The Shadow Soldiers
by Thatwolfbutler
Summary: Follow the story of a young man trying to re-assemble a group of assassins called the Shadow Soldiers. Assembling all six members won't be easy and they'll be hunted the whole way, but he's doing this to help save the kingdom from itself, no matter what the cost.
1. Chapter 1: The Mission

**Hello everyone! I'd like to welcome you all to my newest fanfiction! I've been working on this for awhile and hope you all enjoy it! I took concepts from two animes, The Seven Deadly Sins and Akame Ga Kill. If you've seen either of them, you might notice some similarities! So I hope you all enjoy chapter 1! I'm not 100% sure on the update date, but I think this'll be once every two weeks!**

In a time long ago a kingdom known as Hetalion was under attack from forces stronger than they could have ever imagined. But thank fully a secret order was created to protect the kingdom. This secret order was controlled by the king himself. This order was a band of handpicked assassins who were known The Shadow Soldiers, or The SS for short. They were made up six very different, very unique, very deadly people, all with their own special abilities. Their existence was kept a secret from the general public, but they knew of them from rumors started from who knows where. Stories were soon spread about them, tales of mass murders, stories of people just vanishing into thin air, and various other such rumors were spread far and wide through the kingdom and others as well.

They were indeed a force to be reckoned with, though no one actually knew WHAT they looked like because they struck at night and stuck to the shadows. No names were ever known, no one was even sure how many their were. But soon the kingdom came to an era of peace and their was no need for them anymore, so they disbanded and for ten long years, they've never seen each other.

Now you might be wondering where this story is going, right? Well this takes place after those ten years I just mentioned. In a small town off in the country, inside a small pub called, The Dragon's Den. Inside this pub, sitting at the bar was a young man. He had slicked back blonde hair, eyes as blue as the sky, and he was dressed in a white long sleeved shirt, a dark brown vest, and black pants. He was looking down at his drink and sighed a bit.

"Hey now, why so glum chum?" Standing at the bar was an older man with light brown hair tied in a low ponytail, forest green eyes, and a big bright smile on his face. He was currently cleaning a cup with a rag and trying to make some conversation. "You look a bit down ya know." He chuckles lightly.

He glanced up at the barkeep. "Well...it's nothing really. I'm just trying to think through some things is all, nothing to concern yourself about..." He shakes his head and took a slow sip from his mug. It was a good drink and he wipes the corner of his mouth. "...may I ask a question...?" He kept his head down, staring at his reflection in the liquid.

He smiles and nods, setting down the cup he was cleaning and the rag. "Sure thing! Now go on ahead and ask. As a barkeep I am here for information and secret keeping~" He winks and grins, giving off a light chuckle. "Now what's on your mind."

"Well...I am on a very...special mission you see...and I must ask...have you ever heard of..." He clears his throat and leans over a bit to whisper. "The Shadow Soldiers?"

His eyes went wide and he looks at him. "The...Shadow Soldiers...?" He taps his chin. "Hey! Everyone! This guy here wants to know about The Shadow Soldiers! Anyone know anything!" He calls out for all to hear.

The poor man turns around and blinks a few times, a light blush on his cheeks from embarrassment as everyone started to laugh and bang their hands on the table, fall over laughing, etc.

"The SS?! Oh boy! You've been reading to many fairy tales kid! Hahahah! They don't exist!" One man shook his head.

"Oh yeah, they were just a tall tale! Even if they DID exist, who would want to go seeking out a bunch of murderers?" Another man shook his head and took a sip from his mug.

The barkeep chuckles and pat his shoulder. "No information huh? Well if you stay after I close up I'll help you out." He smiles and winks.

The man looks up at him and nods. "Thanks you sir." He clears his throat and held out his hand. "My name is Ludwig, and I thank you so much for this."

"The name's Henry, I'm glad I could help you out. Nice to meet you Ludwig." He grips his hand and gives it a nice firm shake.

So a few hours afters after that, Henry starts to close up shop, closing and locking the door, putting up chairs on tables, picking up any trash. Soon he sat down next to Ludwig and took a deep breath.

"Alright...so you're looking for The SS now are ya? Tell me, why do you need to find them?" He chuckles lightly and smiles, looking at him.

Ludwig took a deep breath and nodded. "Alright...well you see, they're needed once more...I live in the capital...and things aren't going great..."

Henry tilts his head, still a bit confused. "What? What do you mean they're not going great?" He scratches the top of his head. "Like what exactly is going on over there?"

"Well...you see...their seems to be some sort of...corruption going on in the castle...taxes being raised through the roof, people disappearing in the middle of the night and never coming back, people being forced in the military, it's just all gone to hell..."

Henry nods slowly and rubs his chin. "So it's true...I've heard rumors of such things happening..." He hums softly and leans back. "So...why in search of The SS. How do you know they even exist?"

"Well...I've heard plenty of stories and rumors. My father even told me he had a glimpse of them...though it was dark and they were running away from something, but he knows their were six of them and that they're real. I know if I can find them, they can help the kingdom go back to the way it was! I don't know HOW but I know they can help! They use to work for the Kingdom, right? So they must know how to help! Or...something..." He rubs his head and sighs heavily.

Henry chuckles lightly and rubs his back. "So...you're on a mission to find The SS to try and help the empire, huh? A group of ex assassins coming back together to try and set right everything they protected all those years ago..." He rubs his chin and hummed. "I don't see the down side to that." He grins and laughs.

Ludwig blinks and looks at him. "Really? You think they'll help...? Even after all these years?" He had a look of hope in his eyes.

"Oh yeaaahhhh! I'm sure they'll be all for it! So you say their are six, huh?" He winks and chuckles.

Ludwig blinks and nods. "Yes. Though I'm not actually sure if that's true, that's just what my father told me..." He rubs his chin and hums.

He slaps his back and laughs. "Well your dear old dad was right! Their are indeed six of us! Man I haven't seen any of 'em in so long!"

Ludwig grunts a bit and looks confused. "Wait...'us'? You mean you're...you're one of them?!" He stood up, his eyes wide and surprised at the news.

Henry blinks and nods. "Oh yeah! For sure! Though back in the day I wasn't called Henry. We had nicknames, which I thought were cool. I was known as Draco!" He grins and winks.

"Wait...Draco...? Why is that?" He tilts his head a bit confused.

"Well...you see...as a Shadow Soldier, we each had a special ability of such or weapon or whatever about us. Meaning, we weren't normal. I for instance actually have a dragon friend." He chuckles and winks.

His eyes went wide. "What...? You can't! Dragons have been extinct for hundreds of years!" He couldn't possibly have a dragon! Dragons were hunted to extinction long ago.

Henry shook his head and his finger. "Nuh uh uh~! That's what they want you to think. But I can't tell you to much. He smiles and sets his index finger and thumb in his mouth then whistles.

Then from the ceiling, something woke up that was sleeping on the beams and spread its wings and flew down, landing on his head. It was small red dragon, no bigger than 10-inches long, who roared, though it sounded adorable. He blinks and tilted his head. He had mostly red scales with beige colored ones on his stomach and lower jaw. His wingers were folded on his back and he had a small horn sticking out where his nose is.

Ludwig tilted his head, a bit confused. "That's a dragon...? It's so small." He moved a little closer and tried to poke it. The little guy growls and snaps his jaw at his finger, making him jerk it back.

"Please don't try and like poke him and stuff. He's not good around strangers. Of course he's small! I can't have a full grown dragon in my pub! That would drive away business! Besides, he NEEDS to be small! His name is Argon. He's a sweet little guy~" He rubs the top of the dragon's head who smiles and wags his tail.

Before Ludwig could say anything, the door was kicked in by a man wearing a heavy suit of armor, a big smirk on his face and spiky brown hair.

Argon quickly burrowed his way under Henry's hair to hide himself as Henry smiles and waves. "Sorry sir, but we're closed for the day. If you want a drink you'll have to come by tomorrow."

"Save it. I don't have time for this." He took out a sheet of brown paper with Henry's face drawn on it. "This is you, isn't it?" It said WANTED over the top of the paper and had a reward on the bottom if returned to the kingdom's capital, dead or alive.

Henry blinks a few times. "Well...that is ME but...why am I on a wanted poster...? What did I do!"

The man snorts and starts to laugh. "What haven't you done? You're wanted by the King himself! This morning wanted posters were given to each Divine Guard, six posters each. Who might these six people be? The six people known know as The Shadow Soldiers. That's right, your identities are know longer a secret! You're ALL wanted by the kingdom! Dead or alive!" He grins.

Henry blinks a few times. "Really? So you mean to tell ME that all my ex companions are now going to be hunted down and either captured or killed for no real reason?"

"No real reason? You've all killed thousands of people in your vicious reign! It's now time that you paid for your sins! You're going to be hunted down by every Divine Guard their is! So give up NOW or else!" He stomps his foot and growls.

Henry scratches his head and chuckles lightly. "Really? Vicious reign? We worked for the kingdom you know, but after all that it's turned on us huh? Well...we kinda saw this coming." He smiles. "It was nice living a normal life while it lasted~" He winks and chuckles lightly. "Alright Argon...I think it's time we have a little fuuuun~" Argon pokes his head out from his hair.

Ludwig blinks and shook his head. "He-hey! Come on! This doesn't need to get violent!" He stood between the two.

"Oh shut up! You're all going down! And I am going to be the one who ends you! I am of the newly formed royal guard! We were formed about eight years ago! We're known as the Divine Guards!"

Henry tilts his head a bit, looking confused. "Divine...Guards? You keep saying that but I don't know what that is...do you Argon?" Argon blinks a few times and moves to his shoulder and shook his head.

Ludwig cleared his throat. "I can help with that. You see, the Divine Guards are a special elite force hand picked by the king himself. They are suppose to protect the kingdom and the king, but now a days they're just bullies who like to mess with the people of the kingdom."

The spiky haired man rolled his eyes. "Whatever! I'm just here to take on this...Draco guy! You know that little dragon of yours will fetch a fine price~" He grins and rubs his chin. "Once I kill you both I'll just take him to earn some extra money."

Henry chuckles lightly and held out his hand towards Argon who climbed on it. He was slightly bigger then Henry's hand but fit perfectly in it. "Draco...haven't been called that in a real long time...I promised myself I'd lead a nice normal life...but it seems I'm being forced out of retirement...alright Argon. Looks like we're going back to business." He chuckles. "Now why don't we take this outside? More room that way. You best stay in here Ludwig, where it's safe."

Ludwig looks a bit confused as he looked at Henry. "But...I can help you know! Don't count me out!"

The guard snorts and turns around. "Alright lets go." He walks outside and Henry follows him. Ludwig stays inside, but watched from the open door.

Outside, about a hundred other knights were surrounding them. Henry whistles and chuckles. "Brought some back up huh? Now I'm gonna go out on a limb here and say you don't know to much about me and why I earned the name Draco."

"No, but I'm sure with this many Knights here, we can take you down!" He grins. "Ready men!" He yells and they all cheer and raised their swords.

Henry smirks and starts to laugh. "Oh boy...this isn't gonna be pretty for you all..." He lifts up Argon by his tail and leans his head back.

They all look on being confused and blinks, staring at him. "What...are you?"

Henry opens his mouth and drops Argon in his mouth and swallows.

"GAH! EW!" All the guards made gagging noises and covered their mouths. Ludwig gags a bit and groans, he honestly did not see that coming.

"What the hell?! Did you think you could protect him in your stomach?! Ew! That was gross! come on!" The Divine Guard shakes his head in disgust.

Henry smirks. "Now lets go." A bright light was coming from Henry's chest, in the shape of a dragon. It blinded everyone and soon Henry starts to grow bigger, red scales started to cover his body, dragon wings spread out of his back, beige scales covered his stomach and lower jaw. His eyes shining an emerald green.

When the light disappear they all looked up. thirty feet tall, a bit round in the belly, dark red scales covered the body with beige ones located on the stomach and lower jaw. He had spikes going along his spine and down to the tip of his tail, a horn sticking up where his nose is, and two bull-like horns coming off the head. He wore a furred loin cloth and wrist cuffs. He had a war hammer that had a handle made out of a hard thick wood, the head was made of steel, and on one side of the head was a hammer and on the other side it looked like the blade of an axe. He let out a cloud of steam from his nostrils.

The air was silent as they all stared up at the dragon humanoid creature. Ludwig was amazed and now understood how he managed to get his nickname.

He grinned. "You all look surprised!" He spoke in a loud deep voice. "Now do you understand? The powers of a Shadow Soldier are great! Don't go underestimating any one of us!" He laughs and smirks. "Now...how about I give you have seconds to leave, or ELSE!"

The Divine Guards gulped and growled. "Don't...don't worry! We can take him! Lets go!" CHARGE!"

The knights all cheer and charg forward. Henry shook his head and spread his wings and took off into the air, causing a hard gust of wind to knock them back. He laughs as he flies around and inhales deeply before letting out a stream of fire, from his mouth.

Ludwig's eyes went wide as he slammed the door shut. He took a deep breath, leaning against it. He couldn't believe what he saw...this was the power of one of The Shadow Soldiers...he could heard screams coming from the knights were being burned alive.

"Hahah!" He drops down to the ground, causing it to shake as well as landing on a few knights, crushing them to death. "I will give you all to the count of five to leave this place!"

The guard grit his teeth. "FIRE YOUR ARROWS!"

Some of the knights took out bows and arrows and started to fire them at Henry. He inhales deeply and releases a stream of fire, burning up the arrows. "ONE!" He starts to count.

"Come on! Attack his legs!" He points forward.

They charge, swords raised, ready to cut and hack at his legs. Henry spreads his wings and jumps up into the air. "TWO!" He folds his wings and drops down on the ground, crushing more knights with his rear end. "THREE!"

"This guy is...unbeatable..." He grits his teeth. What could he do?! He was huge, strong, and merciless! Their was only one thing he could do. "RETREAT! RETREAT NOW!"

The knights took no time in running away. Once he was sure they were all heading out he was about to run but was caught in Henry's grasp and picked up. He gulps and struggled in his grasp.

"Now I have one more question..."

He was shaking and his teeth chattering.

Ludwig took a few deep breath and slowly opens the door. Henry was dusting himself off, his little dragon propped on his shoulder. "Okay! So, it seems our adventure starts here buddy. First, we have to find out leader." He winks. "Lets get going!"

Ludwig blinks and nods, slowly stepping out of the pub. Henry's clothes looked good as new, not torn or anything. "Right...lets go!"

Henry grins and put a CLOSED sign on the door. He turns on his heels and points forward. "Alright! We're off to find THE SHADOW SOLDIERS!"

"Ah...since it's a bit late, shouldn't we get some rest...?" Ludwig asked, sweatdropping a bit.

Henry blinks and chuckles a bit nervously. "Er...right! First sleep! THEN we head out! First thing in the morning!" Henry grins and puffs out his chest.

Ludwig nodded and smiled lightly. "Yes sir!"

 **Ludwig: Germany**  
 **Henry: Male!Hungary**


	2. Chapter 2: Just The Beginning

Ludwig was on a mission to reunite the Shadow Soldiers in order to help bring back the kingdom to its former glory. He found one of the Shadow Soldiers, Henry, formally known as Draco. Together with him, they were on their way to try and find the others. But their journey would soon prove one not to be such an easy one.

"Sir! SIR!" The Divine Guard from before, who managed to survive, ran straight into the throne room of the castle of the king. He panted and set his hands on his knees. "S-sir! I have...te-terible ne-news!"

Sitting up on the throne, about a foot off the ground with stairs located on the sides, was the king. He had shaggy blonde hair, big bushy eyebrows, and eyes as green as emeralds. He raised a brow, staring down at the man. "What the bloody hell is it?"

"Si-sir! The-they're back! They're coming BACK!" He panted as he fell to his knees, bowing in front of his king. "It seems a young man is going to reunite The Shadow Soldiers. They already have one, Draco! He killed over half of my men!"

His eyes went wide and he stands up. "What?! Someone is trying to reunite those band of murderers?! Bloody hell! This isn't good! Gather all the Divine Guards! NOW! THIS is an emergency meeting!" He stomped his foot, gritting his teeth.

"Yes your highness." He ran off to go gather the other Divine Guards.

The king groans and sits down, rubbing his temples. "No...this can't be happening...damn it!"

Back with Henry and Ludwig, Ludwig looked down at the ground, trying to think things through and gather what has happened the previous day. "So...Mr. Henry, where exactly are we going...?" He asked, tilting his head a bit as Henry pointed forward.

"Well...like I said, we first need to find the leader of our band of murderers." He chuckles lightly. "Now as for where that might be, I think I have a goooood idea. That Divine knight helped me out. Right Argon?" He chuckles lightly and looked at his dragon that rested on his shoulder.

Ludwig blinked and looked a bit confused as he looked at him. "What...?"

 _Flashback_

 _"So...Mr. Divine Guard, do you know where I'm suppose to find my friends?" He snorted a little smoke in his face from his nostrils. holding the Divine Guard in a tight fist._

 _He gulped, hard, his teeth chattering a little bit. "Wha-what makes you think I-I'll tell you so-something as vital a-as that!" He glares at him._

 _"Oh? Feeling a bit high and mighty? Well I can always squeeze you ya know." He tightens his grip around him a little, making it hard to breath for him._

 _He grits his teeth and nods a bit. "Fi-fine! If...you must know...we know...that your leader, The Black Death, is living off in the next two towns over...we currently have the one dubbed Farkas, in custody..."_

 _"Custody?" He raised a brow, tightening his grip around him a little bit more, causing bones and organs to constrict._

 _He coughed out a little bit. "I-In Dunlind Pr-Prison!" He grit his teeth and let out a breath as the grip was loosened. "W-we don't know currently know the whereabouts of the rest of them! I swear to you!"_

 _"Hmmm..." He rubbed his chin in thought and nodded. "Thanks! You were a big help, here let me give you a lift home." He rears back his arm._

 _"H-hey! Wait! No! Don't you da-AAAHHHH!" He yells as he was then thrown far far away._

"And that's what happened." Henry grins and crosses his arms. Argon nods and wags his tail.

Ludwig blinks a few times. "Oh...well, we should get your leader as soon as we can! It's only a matter of time before the Divine Guards start their hunt!" He nods.

Henry chuckles and sets his hands in his pockets. "Right...but before that, we need to make a small detour..."

"Detour...? Where? What for? Shouldn't we go and try to help out the others as soon as we can?" He asked, clenching his fists a bit, wanting to go and find the leader as soon as they can so they can find the rest.

Henry shakes his head and hums a bit, squinting his eyes. "Don't worry, I'm sure once they catch wind of what's going on they'll bring out their old gear...just like me...we knew this would happen one day...so try not to under estimate us so much, alright?" He chuckles and grins. "Ahah!" He runs over to an old oak tree and smiles down at the pile of leaves in front of it.

"Where are we exactly...?" He looks up at the old oak tree and tilts his head a bit.

"This is wear I hid aaaall my old stuff..." He looks at Argon who hops off his shoulder and starts to dig into a pile of leaves. "I need my weapon and my old outfit. If we're bringing the gang back together, then I need my old uniform. Who KNOWS what kind of trouble we're gonna get in to! Just like old times." He looks up fondly at the memories.

Argon pokes his head out from the hole and smiles. He looks up at Henry who held out his hand for him to climb on. His little dragon friend crawls up his arm and rests on his shoulder. Henry reaches down into the leaf pile that was deeper than it looked and pulled out a treasure chest. "This here is all my old gear." He blew on it, wiping away the dust.

"Old gear?" Ludwig raises a brow, looking a bit confused at the moment. He watches as Henry opens up the chest with a nostalgic smile on his face as he looks inside.

"Oh yeah...my gear." He first pulls out a leather chest plate with a dragon symbol on it, with some sort of ancient writing scribbled around the dragon and inside of it. He then pulls out a spiked leather collar as well. He reaches down deeper and grins big as he pulled out a much smaller version of the war hammer he had when he was a dragon humanoid.

"You actually have that? As a weapon?" Ludwig asked, tilting his head a bit. He noticed it on his back when he...transformed.

He nods and grins. "Oh yeah~! My precious war hammer! I have the big size for my dragonoid form and my regular human form. Both have the same abilities, just different sizes. I can control earth elements with this baby. Now to change!" Argon flaps his wings and flew off his shoulder. Henry whistles as he takes off his vest and shirt, slipping on his leather chest plate and wraps the leather spiked collar around his neck. He pulls out a pair of furry shorts and took off his pants slipping them on. Lastly, his boots with the fur around the top. He slips them on and nods then grins, puffing out his chest. "Ah, perfect~! My old gear!" Argon flew up and landed on his head as he slips on his special carrying strap for his weapon.

Ludwig blinks and stares at him before nodding. "Right, now that you've got your old uniform, do you think we can go and help the others?" He raises a brow, a bit eager to get going. They could all be in danger as we speak and he didn't want to keep them waiting!

Henry nods and sighs. "Yeah yeah, we can get going, lets go. You know, you're a really bossy guy. We were all assassins you know. Don't worry so much about them." He chuckles and turns on his heel. "Alright, first off, the next town! We should get some food!" He points froward, stomach growling.

Ludwig nods. "Right, we should reach there by nightfall, before anymore Divine Guards try and come after you again. Maybe it would be wise to try and stay away from people..." He rubs his chin in thought.

Henry shakes his head. "Don't worry! Stealth is my middle name! I use to be an assassin you know. I'll manage to stay out of sight~" He winks and grins. "Now lets get going!" He laughs and marches onward.

Ludwig blinks a few times and nods. "Alright, lets go..." He started to walk, holding his hands behind his back and looking down. He had a lot of questions on his mind. Since they were going to be traveling together for awhile, maybe he could get a few answers. "So...Henry, how exactly did this group form?" He asked, glancing back at him.

Henry looks up and rubs his chin in thought. "Oh yeah...well first, lets go back, back twenty years! Back when the kingdom was in a major war with the kingdom to the east of us. We'd been in war with them for two years by then...the old king was having a tough time trying to figure out what to do...they were slowly started to get closer and closer to the capital. So he asked his advisers what he should do and one of them suggest some sort of elite force that would take down the enemy quickly, brutally, and most of all without being noticed. A special small elite team to strike fear into our enemies! The king like the idea and so he found our leader!"

Ludwig was listening with baited breath and tilts his head a bit. "How did he come in contact with your leader exactly?" He asked, extremely curious.

Henry chuckles and looks up, trying to think. "Well...you see, their were rumors about a young warrior who took down eight big strong men in one blow. So the king summoned our leader there and so gave specific instructions to create the most elite team of assassins that they could find within one month. I know, one month? Surely not enough time! Oh but our leader did it! Within that one month, their were a total of six of us~" He chuckles lightly and grins.

"Oh...if you don't mind me asking...how did your leader find you?" Ludwig tilted his head, more interested in this story and wants to know more.

Henry crosses his arms and hums in thought. "Oh man...that takes me back...well...by that time...when she first met me, I had been with Argon for five years...I was still learning to control my power and transformation when I swallowed him, so I spent a year in that form, gaining control and not losing myself in the intense savage nature and overwhelming sense of power and superiority..."

~o~o~o~o~

 _20 years ago, standing in front of the large mouth of a cave, a hooded figure stood, staring into it, glowing red eyes glaring back, a puff of smoke coming out and causing the hooded one to cough a little, but they were undeterred._

 _"Who goes there?" The deep booming voice came from the cave. "Go away, you're not wanted here._

 _"You're the one they refer to as Draco, correct?" The figure asked, a bit of curiosity dripping from their voice._

 _A soft hum vibrated from the cave as he answered. "And what if I am? Have you come to try and slay me? Many have tried and failed, so I suggest you turn around and leave...if you know what's good for you human." Suddenly he reached out and slammed down his war hammer in front of the human. The hammer slamming on the ground caused it to quake and shake. The range of the earthquake was quite large, birds flew into the sky and animals scurried away.  
_

 _A strong gust of wind blew the cloak they were wearing, but the hood was well held on to. Still undeterred the hooded figure spoke once more. "I am not here for a fight. I am here but to ask a simple question. I'm sure you're aware of the certain war going between the two kingdoms?"_

 _"Yes, I am quite aware of such...now what does that have to do with me?" The hammer was picked up and pulled back into the cave, interest perked up a bit._

 _"An elite assassination force is being put together by the king himself. I have been entrusted in creating the perfect team, you're going to be part of it."_

 _A loud laugh erupted out from the cave, causing the ground to lightly tremble. "Now why would you think I'd do something as help you humans?"_

 _"Because I know you are one."_

 _The laughing stopped and a low growl came out from the cave. "What? How would you know such information? You're talking crazy. I'm no human! I am a dragon! The last of my kind!"_

 _"I know many things sir Draco, but I know you're not an actual dragon. You are a dragon on the outside, but on the inside, you're human. Your sense of thinking and reactions to everything are all human. I'm not sure how this is possible, but I won't ask as that is your business and we just met. But, I believe your abilities and power shall come in handy. Now, would you except my offer and join? Help the kingdom? Maybe even learn to try and control this ability of yours?"_

 _Another puff of smoke left the cave as the glowing red eyes closed and a few seconds later, a small dragon crawled out, growling lightly before being picked up by the tail by who we know to be as Henry, in what he calls his 'old fighting gear'. "So...what exactly will we be doing?"_

 _A small smile crossed the hooded figures features as they turned around, cape fluttering behind them. "Follow me, you shall be informed on the way."_

 _~o~o~o~o~_

Henry chuckles lightly as he rubs his chin at the distant memory. "And that my friend is how I met our leader...it's been awhile since I've thought about it to be honest..." Argon makes a squeaking like noise and crawled up on Henry's head. Henry chuckles and rubs Argon under his chin, making his tail wag back and forth.

"Wow...that's one amazing story...did you actually think you were a dragon?" He tilts his head a bit.

Henry shakes his head a little. "Naaahhh. I knew I wasn't a REAL dragon, but that's just what I told everyone. They either got scared and ran off or tried to slay me. Then once they got a good look at me, they'd run away. Got people to leave me alone as I learned to control myself. But I learned much faster once I had joined the Shadow Soldiers!" He grins and throws his arms up.

Ludwig nods slowly. "I see...such an interesting history..." He rubs his chin in thought and nods. "Do all the members of the Shadow Soldiers have such interesting stories on how they met your leader?" He looks at him, wonder in his eyes and curiosity.

"Oh you bet. I'm sure once we get each member you can ask them yourself! Because I'm not to sure myself to be honest..." He rubs the back of his head, chuckling lightly.

Ludwig nods in understanding. They sure were an interesting group, that's for sure. It was sometimes hard to believe this happy go lucky man use to be some cold blooded assassin. "Now, who else do we need to find exactly? I know their are six members, but who are they?"

"Oh! Well since their are six of us in total and you found me, Draco, we also need The Black Death, our leader. Farkas, the grumpiest guy you'll ever meet, who is at a prison somewhere. Pyro, our explosives expert and fire starter, but he's super nice. Doctor, who was the teams doctor of course, but he we called him Doc for short, really sweet and nice though a bit strange at times. Then lastly Diablo, the troublemaker and prankster of the group, but the sneakiest one of us and probably the most bloodthirsty.

Ludwig rubs his chin in thought and nods slowly. "I see...they all have such interesting nicknames...I can't wait to meet these brilliant minds! I know with all your help, we will be able to help the kingdom back to its former glory!" Ludwig nods.

Henry laughs and jumps up. "Oh yeah! And nothing is gonna get in our way!" He grins and throws his arms up and cheers as well as Argon who let out a small battle cry. The small dragon lets out a small stream of fire from his mouth.

~o~o~o~o~

Back at the castle, Arthur was walking down the hallway worry and fear spread across his face, hands behind his back, muttering to himself. He knew the Shadow Soldiers were coming for him and going to ruin his plans! So he devised to create the most powerful team of Divine Guards he could! He inhales deeply and stands in front of the doors of his game room. Arthur had control of exactly one hundred Divine Guards. So out of that hundred he hand picked the six strongest guards after much deliberation. These six were in this room, waiting for the king to come in and explain what they were doing there.

One was playing darts, another playing a game of pool, one was just reading, another sitting at the bar and drinking, one was currently enjoying a snack, and lastly one was sitting in a comfy chair and simply waited patiently for some sort of explanation.

The doors slam open and Arthur smiles at all six of them and looks around. "Ahhhh I'm glad you all could make it! I have called you all here for a very special reason!" He grins and rubs his hands together as he walks inside and the doors slowly close behind him, closing with a soft _clique._

 **Hello all! Hope you enjoyed the newest chapter! I know I did. The next chapter is actually one of my favorites and I had a great time writing it. I know you probably have a lot of questions like 'Who are the rest of the Shadow Soldiers? Who has the king gathered in the game room?' well you'll have to read and find our for yourselves! No spoiling! Hope you enjoyed, remember to read, review, favorite, and/or follow!  
**

 **Arthur: England**


	3. Chapter 3: A New Threat

Arthur smiles and looks between them. "Hello all! I'm sure you're all wondering why you're here today, yes?" He chuckles lightly, rubbing his hands together.

A snort came out from a tanned man with auburn hair, a strange cowlick sticking out from his head. His eyes were as red as the billiard ball he was trying to knock in the hole with the white one. "Sure thing kingy, but one minute." He licks his lips as slams the pole at the white ball, making it roll and hit the solid red colored red, rolling in the hole. "Hahah! YES!" He throws up his arms. He didn't have a shirt, showing off his six pack and muscles, but he DID have a hooded cape that resembled a fox with a tail at the end, and when the hood was pulled up, it resembled a fox head. It was nice and furry on the outside and on the inside it was laced with a silk lining. He wore a pair of tattered pants and no shoes. Holding up his pants was a belt with a fox head carved into it.

"You should be more respectful comrade. He is being the king after all." Throwing darts at the dart board was a fairly tail man, standing six feet. He threw a dart, hitting the bulls eye with deadly accuracy. He had ash blonde hair and the most beautiful violet eyes you ever did see. An old grey scarf was wrapped around his neck. He had a long black coat and dark brown pants as well as heavy boots on.

Arthur shakes his head. "No no it's fine, I'm sure practicing his pool shot is MUCH more important..." He rolls his eyes. "And how are you doing over there." He looked towards the proper looking man reading his book.

He glances up, looking over his glasses with his violet eyes. He wore an ascot with his brown vest and long white button up shirt. He had tight dark brown pants and shining black shoes. Their was a sword attached to his hip with a cross on the sheath. He ran his hand through his slightly wavy brown hair that had a strange curl sticking up. He closes his book as he puts a bookmark in it. "I suppose I'm doing fine, but I would be doing better if it were quiet and I could do some more reading."

Arthur hums. "Right...of course..." He sighs shaking his head. "Anything else anyone wishes to tell me? Anything at all!" He looks around the room.

A laugh comes over from the bar, sitting on a chair with a small hat with two ribbons hanging off of it. A small tooth pokes out of his mouth as he took a sip from his class of vodka. "I got nothing to complain about king! Nice selection of alcohol. This is what makes me happy." He chuckles. He had shaggy brown hair and eyes as red as a red velvet cupcake. He wore a red jacket that had white and red stripes over the cuffs of the jacket. He also wore black leather gloves. He grins down at what seemed to be a mini dragon with pale blue scales, his head having more jagged and sharp looking edges coming off of it. It looks up at the man and crawls up on his arm and gets comfy on his shoulder.

"Hm, well at least that's good to hear..." He mutters under his breath and glances at the last two. "Anything either of you would like to add?" He tilts his head a bit.

"No, I would just appreciate learning as to why we were brought here." This one was a woman with short blonde hair and eyes as blue as the ocean. Their was a mace strapped to her back and she wore a black t-shirt and green pants. She had her arms crossed and was sitting up straight. She has an air of seriousness around her.

The last to one was a young man with short brown hair and a strange curl coming off the left side of his head. He was currently eating a plate of pasta, napkin tucked in his blue button shirt, making sure not to drop any pasta sauce on his brown pants. "Nope~! I'm good!" He smiles. He was in a simple long sleeved button up blue shirt, and long brown pants.

Arthur nods. "Alright! Now that you're all here, it's time we get down to business..." He takes his seat in a chair. "Allen, Ivan, Roderich, Vladimir, Monika, and Feliciano. I've brought you all here today to help me deal with a problem...I'm sure you've all heard of the Shadow Soldiers?" He glances around the room as everyone froze and looks at him with much interest, practically begging him to continue.

Allen, who was playing pool, starts to laugh and smirks. "Who hasn't heard of them? A secret organization put together by the king about twenty years ago? Every Divine Guard knows about them. They're super strong and even more deadly...oh what it would be to fight one of 'em..." He chuckles and lines up his next shot.

"Da, they were being very strong I hear back in day. Killing thousands possibly even millions over the years they served under the king." Ivan took out the darts he threw from the dart board. "Though they disbanded and no one is sure where they are now..."

Arthur chuckles and nods. "Oh yes, quite, but we do have one of them in custody in one of our prisons. Seems not to long after they disbanded he went out and attacked a Divine Guard or something and got sent to prison. Seems he's been in there since because of how severe and brutal it was...as for the rest, well we're not sure..."

Roderich raises a brow, holding his book close. "Oh yes...they had a demon on that team didn't they...or so that's what I've heard..." He rubs his chin and sets his hand on the handle of his sword. "That vile beast named Diablo..." His voice drips with disdain as he said the name.

Vladimir hums and leans back in his seat before turning around, tapping his chin in thought. "I remember those stories...they had one called Draco, didn't they?" He chuckles and smirks, looking over at his dragon who growls a little bit. "I know you remember."

"But the question still remains, why are we here?" Monika asked, with a raised brow and looking at the king. "We all of course know about the Shadow Soldiers, but why have you gathered us here?"

Arthur chuckles and nods. "Right...well it seems someone is bringing them back together and they're coming HERE! Now what I need you all to do is band together and hunt them down and eliminate them."

Allen snickers and then starts to laugh really loud. "Wha-what?! You're seriously asking us t-to go out...and kill the Shadow Soldiers? Really? Because if yes, then I'm sooooo in for it~" He grins and crosses his arms.

Ivan chuckles, throwing one more dart, hitting it dead center. "Oh? Well if it is being the king's orders then how can I refuse?" He smirks a bit.

"I have one question..." Monika raised her hand, crossing her arms. "Now how do you know they're coming here of all places? Weren't they a secret order run by the old king himself? Why would they join once more to try and attack the empire?" She raises a brow, more curious than anything and may be a bit skeptical. "Plus, didn't you already send out an order to all Divine Guards anyways?"

Arthur sighs and crosses his arms. "Well it's a fair question and I expected someone to ask. I know the kingdom isn't as it use to be. It's a bit corrupted now a days, more senseless deaths and battles, and taxes being raised, money hoarding, things like that. People think I've turned a blind eye! Or that I haven't noticed...well the truth is I am well aware! I do wish to do something, but I have much bigger things I need to take care of...things that worry me greatly..." He looks off to the side and shakes his head. "I am aware of my order, but I figured selecting the strongest Divine Guards I have and putting them on the distinct mission of taking them down would help and give a much stronger advantage." He smiles, puffing out his chest a bit. "Now! I hope you all understand? Will you be accepting your mission?" He raises a brow.

Allen laughs and crosses his arms. "Damn straight."

Ivan smiles and nods. "But of course your highness~" He chuckles lightly.

Monika nods. "If it is your will, then I must agree your majesty."

Roderich hums and nods. "Ja ja, yes of course your higness."

Feliciano grins big and nods. "Siiii~! If that's what you want then it's what we'll do~"

Vladimir grins big and nods. "Sounds good to me your highness!"

Arthur sighs happily and nods. "Good! Now I'm sure you all will get along nicely. Now I shall leave you all to do as you want. Just make sure you eliminate those Shadow Soldiers!" With that Arthur left.

Ivan clears his throat and smiles, holding his hands behind his back. "Well, I am hoping we will be able to be working together."

Monika nods. "Now, where exactly do we start? Since we know the whereabouts of two of them..." She mumbles a bit. "And one is traveling with someone...how should we go about this?"

Allen laughs and howls. "I wanna take down that Farkas! I here he's super strong! He's big, he's tough, and when I take him down I'll be the one who gets that title!" He laughs and stands up on the pool table, snickering.

"Honestly, will you calm down and get off the table like that? You're behaving like a wild animal. You ARE a Divine Guard aren't you? Have some dignity." Rocerich stands up, sighing and shaking his head.

Allen blinks and jumps down from the table and walks over to him, glaring at him and growling. "You got a problem with me? Huh, book worm? I can take you down right now if I wanted to."

He raises a brow, hand slowly reaching to grab the hilt of his sword, eyes narrowing. "I wouldn't suggest starting anything with me."

"Hey! Wait! Calm down you two! We're all friends here!" Feliciano waves his arms around, standing between them. "Shouldn't we hurting the Shadow Soldiers instead of each other?" Feliciano asks, tilting his head a bit.

Ivan walks over, standing next to them, a cold aura radiating from him. "He is being the right you know. We are all comrades here, so calm down."

The two look at one another and turn away from each other, crossing their arms. Though Roderich stuck his nose up in the air for extra measure.

Vladimir chuckles lightly as he leans his back against the bar top as he watches them. "This should be a fun group, right Artemis?" The dragon on his shoulder nods and smiles up at him.

Monika clears her throat. "But before we do anything, I think it's important we figure out a leader...I think it would make things easier if someone took charge and all."

Ivan rubs his chin in thought and nods. "You are quite right...it would be much easier to have designated leader..."

Feliciano jumps up and down, waving his arms around. "Oh oh! I vote Ivan the leader!" He grins.

Monika nods in agreement. "I also think that would be the best choice."

Vlad pops up next to Monika. "I also vote yes! Seems like a brilliant idea! Besides out of all of us, he's probably the most powerful."

Ivan blinks a few times an chuckles, waving his hand. "Oh come now, you're going to make me blush. Come now, I'm not that strong you know." He blushes lightly, hiding behind his scarf.

Roderich adjusts his glasses, looking at a book he picks up. "Ivan The Ice King can be categorized as one of the strongest members of the kings royal army, or Divine Guards. His most notable achievement is defeating the Volkin army five years ago in mere seconds with one wave of his hand. An army of approximately twenty thousand men." Roderich shuts his book.

Allen whistles and chuckles. "Well if you're that strong, then I'm all for you being the leader."

Ivan gives a soft chuckle and clears his throat. "Well, if you're all going to agree, then I will take my role as leader very seriously. I say, for now, we sit down, get to know each other a little bit. Then we figure out our plan of action." He crosses his arms.

So after gathering in a circle, they start to introduce themselves and gie a little information to better understand one another to work more efficiently as a team.

Allen grins. "My name is Allen~ I have this special belt here." He grips the buckle of the belt. "That lets me turn into a werefox. There are quite a few of these things made and all have different animals on them. I gain all the advantages of a fox, even in my human stat, such as I'm stealthy, can jump really high, have retractable claws, can see in the dark, great sense of smell, and I can run up to thirty miles per hour!" He puffs out his chest and grins. "I really love a good fight, especially when I win. Before being a Divine Guard, I went out looking for fights and was even apart of a fight club for the longest time." He sits down.

Roderich rolls his eyes and clears his throat as he stands up next. "My name is Roderich. I am a very smart man and have been known for my excellent sense of strategy as well as sword fighting skills. I use my holy sword given to me by my father who was killed by a filthy demon. Before my time serving the kingdom, I went around killing any demons causing trouble. I never did find the demon who killed my father though. But I am hoping this Diablo might have the answers I will be looking for." He sighs a bit. "But I also enjoy music, reading, peace and quiet, and playing the piano." He sits down.

Monika stands up and clears her throat. "My name is Monika and I have the strength that could rival any man or creature. I take my job very seriously and hope to help stop these Shadow Soldiers. I have my mace which harnesses the power of lightening. It can create and shoot out bolts of lightening. I happen to be one sixteenth giant on my mothers side, so when I said I have strength that could rival any man or creature, I really mean it. In my free time I also enjoy reading as well as training both mind and body. Before becoming a Divine Guard I was simply a regular soldier." She nods and sits down.

Vladimir blinks and stands up, clearing his throat. "My name is Vladimir. But you can call me Vlad and this here is my partner, Artemis. He's been my faithful dragon friend for about twenty years now? With the help of him and a few special items, such as this jacket." He spins around, revealing a dragon silhouette with some sort of ancient writing around and in it. "It gives me a few dragon like abilities~ I also have a special weapon, but it's not with me at the moment." He chuckles lightly. "I like drinking vodka in my free time and pulling pranks on people. Before I joined I just lived from town to town with Artemis really. Learning to control my powers and abilities for the most part." Artemis nods and climbs on his head, purring softly. Vladimir smiles and sits down.

Feliciano blinks a few times and jumps up, grinning big. "Hello everyone! My name is Feliciano! But you can all call me Feli since we're all gonna be friends! I'm really good with a knife with my deadly accuracy and I've been told I'm very light on my feet. I'm pretty smart too when it comes down to a fight, but I'm not good with preparing a strategy before hand. Oh! I like cooking! So I can make team meals! Oh! I also making new friends and taking long naps, petting cats, flirting with cute girls, and eating pasta!" He grins and giggles.

Allen snorts a bit. "For sure heard of you. They say when you open your eyes you unleash your full potential and no one lives to tell the tale." He laughs and grins. "You're my kinda guy!"

Feli pokes his fingers together and smiles a little bit. "Well...it's true!" He chuckles lightly and sits down bouncing in his seat.

Ivan stands up and clears his throat. "I'm sure you are all knowing the lot about me, but my name is being Ivan and I hope we can all be friends here. I love the warm weather and sunflowers are being my favorite flower! Now I am thinking, maybe we can come up with a name for ourselves? So we feel more of like a team?"

Vlad nods and smiles. "I think that's a great idea! Oh! I vote the Dragon Legion!" Artemis raises his hand up in agreement with the name. "Okay two votes!"

Allen raises a brow. "Now how is that gonna work? You're the only one with a dragon! How about uh...the...night walkers!"

Monika raises a brow. "No...that sounds a bit...creepy, we need something more...well I don't know how to put it."

"Well since we're Divine Guards, maybe something somewhat along those lines..." Ivan suggests.

Suddenly a light bulb appears over his head. "Oh! How about the Holy Defenders!" Feliciano stands up, grinning big.

They all look at him and nod, murmuring to one another at the name. The name did strike a sort of sense of hope in their hearts.

"Oh yeah~ A Holy Defender! I like it! We're gonna be the Holy Defenders!" Allen grins big and rubs his chin.

"Hand picked by the king himself...to protect the world from the shadows that lurk around the corner." Roderich said, enjoying the way that sounds.

Ivan smiles. "And to wipe out those Shadow Soldiers...the Holy Defenders. Da, it is good!" He chuckles and grins big.

"Then it is settled." Monika nods. "So...as for the Shadow Soldiers, how should we go about them?"

"Well, I guess it does sound pretty cool. I do love the way it sounds. Hell, I'm all for it!" Vlad throws his arms up.

"Well...since we are sure Draco and his traveling companion are heading to find the leader first, I say I, along with someone else, go and try to get there before them. We will take those two down, while the rest of you gather information on the location of the rest." Ivan stands and looks at his team.

Allen raises his hand. "What about Farkas, huh? Since he's in jail, can't we just go take him out now?" He tilts his head a bit.

Ivan shakes his head. "First we take out the leader, The Black Death and Draco, then we can go take care of him. He's not going anywhere after all. He's in one of the most heavily guarded prisons around. He'll be stuck there for a long time." He chuckles lightly. "Is that clear so far? Everyone understand?"

"Yes sir!" They all said together nodding in unison.

"Now as for who goes with me." They all leaned in, waiting in anticipation. "Vladimir, you're coming with me."

Vlad jumps out of his seat and cheers. "Yes! Hahah~! I mean! Thank you sir!" He bows his head.

He chuckles and smiles down at him, patting him on the back. "We leave tomorrow morning, so rest up and make sure to take everything you need.

Vlad smiles and nods, grinning big. "Yes sir! Thank you sir!" Artemis wags his tail and flaps his wings, landing on Vlad's head, feeling excited. "Oh yes, soon enough, we will get our chance little guy~" He chuckles lightly.

"Alright Holy Defenders! Be resting well tonight! Tomorrow, we head out on our first mission!" He declares, face serious and voice booming.

"YES SIR!" They all said together and then were dismissed, planning on getting ready with everything they need. This wasn't going to be easy and they knew it, but they were going to be prepared.

 **Hahaha! Now if you haven't guessed yet, these will be the main antagonists to the Shadow Soldiers! I'm sure you ere all pretty surprised who is in this group, right? I enjoy putting random characters together to make things more interesting :3 So I hope you all enjoy this! Now feel free to guess who ends up in the Shadow Soldiers group xD**

 **Allen: 2P!America  
Ivan: Russia  
Vladimir: Romania  
Roderich: Austria  
Monika: Fem!Germany  
Feliciano: Italy**


	4. Chapter 4: The First Confrontation

Ludwig was sitting at a table, having just ordered something to eat. He glances around the tavern and rests his elbows on the table, setting his chin on the palm of his hand. He notices on the wall close to the front door their were wanted posters posted on it, though none for the Shadow Soldiers which was a big relief, but you can't be to sure...the wanted posters for the Shadow Soldiers were probably just to the Divine Guards...it made sense as to not freak out the public or anything. But still, who knows if any Divine Guards were lurking around here.

Ludwig closes his eyes in thought and hums to himself as he thinks about it more. Why would they want to hunt them down? What's going on with this kingdom? These thoughts ran through his mind until he heard a voice.

"Your meal sir." Said the waitress as she sets down his two plates. "You must be hungry, ordering two plates like this." She gives a light chuckle. "I hope you enjoy your meal." She nods and left him to his meal.

Ludwig smiles lightly and nods before looking at his two plates. He glances up towards the ceiling where Henry and Argon were lying on one of the beams going across the inside of the roof. Henry looks down at him and grins as he gives him a thumbs up, chuckling lightly. He looks back at the two plates and glances around, lifting up the plate and Argon swiftly flew down and took the plate, setting it down on the beam so he and Henry can enjoy their food.

Ludwig was enjoying his mashed potatoes, with a side of sliced pieces of ham. He hums a bit as he smiles lightly, enjoying his tasty meal. It reminded him of home, when his father use to cook meat and potatoes. He thought about his father back home, wondering how he was doing right now. He was probably worried about him though...he was hoping he was alright. When he told his father what he was going to do, he wasn't to thrilled at the idea, but he let him go. Ludwig sighs a bit as he finishes and sets down his fork.

"All finished hun?" The waitress asks, looking at the sullen man who jumps a bit. "Sorry, didn't mean to startle ya." She laughs a bit nervously.

Ludwig shakes his head. "Oh it's fine, now worries, yes I am done thank you." He looks over and saw both empty plates. He didn't even notice the other plate being set down from the ceiling. "Now...do you know a good place to stay for the night...?" He looks up at the nice women who hums in thought as she thought to herself.

"Oh! There's an inn near by! Just walk down the street. It's a few buildings down, you can't miss it!" She smiles and takes both the plates and nods.

Ludwig thanks her and pays for his meal before getting up and leaving. He sighs a bit, hands in his pockets. It was night time and some people were out drinking and socializing and such, lights turned on in various houses and establishments. Henry looks around and smiles big, Argon hiding in his hair and peeks out a bit.

"Man it's been awhile since I've gotten out and explored this wondrous country of ours!" He chuckles and inhales deeply. "Aaahhh, smell that fresh clean air!"

Ludwig blinks and raises a brow. "Are you sure it's okay for you to be out in the open now...?" He asks a bit skeptically.

Henry waves his hand. "Psshhh! Don't worry! It's night, I'll be good! Don't worry so much about me, alright? I know exactly what I'm doin!" He puffs out his chest and grins.

Ludwig sighs and shakes his head. "I'll try...but you know, for someone who was a well...you know, you're very...well...how should I put this..." He rubs his chin in thought.

"Happy go lucky? Dumb? I don't seem like a killer? An idiot? Screwball? Way to nice? Something along those lines?" Henry looks at him and blinks.

He looks at him, a bit surprised. So it seems this isn't the first time he's been told this. "We-well...yes." He nods.

He chuckles lightly and puts his arm over his shoulder. "Well...between you and me, I get that a lot. I know I don't seem like much, but when push comes to shove, I can be a very scary and powerful man! As you've already seen, yeah?"

Ludwig had almost forgotten somehow. He nods slowly. "You're right...my apologies. I didn't want to sound rude or anything of the sort."

"Oh it's fine, don't worry about it! I get that a lot! I'm way use to it to be honest. Though the people who usually told me these things were my targets." He chuckles lightly. "But no worries! I won't kill ya~" He pats him on the chest, chuckling softly.

Ludwig sweatdrops a bit. "Well...that's good to hear I suppose..." He mumbles a bit to himself and shakes his head before they reach the Inn. He gets them a room with two beds and sighs as he flopps down on the nice comfy bed and closes his eyes. "I'm so tired..."

Henry nods and flops on the bed, putting his hands behind his head. Argon yawns and curls up on his chest, drifting off to sleep. "Yeah well you best rest up! Because tomorrow is a big day! We should be reaching the town Black Death lives in tomorrow! I know you're gonna love the boss!" He grins and chuckles, yawning and stretching.

Ludwig nods slowly. "Right...I sure hope so..." He sighs and closes his eyes. He was a bit nervous meeting this leader of the Shadow Soldiers. He was curious to see what type of person this Black Death was. With a name like that, he imagines a big burly man with heavy armor or something. He sighs a bit as he lets his mind wonder and slowly drifts off to sleep.

~o~o~o~o~

The next morning in a village not to far away, in a small house was a woman. She sits up in bed, wearing a lace gown. The sun was rising and the birds chirp. She stands up, her long curly black hair reaching down to her lower back. Her grey eyes look out the window, staring at the empty streets of the village. She takes a deep breath and spins around on her heel and heads to the bathroom, getting ready for the day.

After getting ready for the day, brushing her hair and putting it up in a ponytail, washing her face and getting dressed in black pants, a long white sleeve button up shirt with grey vest. She was sitting in a nice comfy chair, book in hand, enjoying the quiet morning as she did everyday.

Though today would be a bit different as their was a soft knock on the door. She raises a brow as this was very strange. Who could be knocking on her door at this early hour? She sighs and sets a bookmark in her book before setting it down and getting up to answer the door.

She opens the door and looks up at the tall man with violet eyes. He gave a small smile and holds up and rolled up sheet of paper. "Hello~ I am sorry for being the one to disturb you this early in the morning. But...you see, we are having the business to discuss..." He unrolls the paper, holding her wanted poster. "The Black Death, leader of the Shadow Soldiers, da?"

She raises a brow, a bit curious as to where this was going to lead. She didn't say anything just yet though.

"How about we talk, yes? I am sure we are the reasonable people~" He gives an innocent smile.

She steps to the side and allows him entrance into her home. "Come in."

He smiles and walks inside and slowly the door closes behind him.

The two sit down, looking at each other, probably trying to decide just how strong the other is. Ivan gave a sly smile, his fingers interlocked together on his lap. "Your name is Mara correct? It is being the very pretty name."

She nods slowly. "That is correct...now what exactly brings you here sir Ivan."

"Oh! You even know my name! I suppose that is not surprising...I am quite famous it seems." He chuckles softly and takes a deep breath. "You and your friends are being wanted by the king. He told all of us Divine Guards about it and you are all being the hunted right now. But he created a special force to rid of you all, since he is not sure if any of the other Divine Guards can handle it."

"I see...so what exactly are you gaining from ridding of me and my former teammates? Is their something the king is trying to accomplish with such a task?" She taps her fingers on her arm when she crosses them. It was very strange for this to be happening so she was trying t get as many answers as she could and hopefully some answers.

"I am not being the sure...but we can't go against the king after all. All I am doing is following orders. My team and I are also on the hunt for everyone! Farkas is currently being held in a prison, and it seems Draco, along with a young man are on their way here! So we are going to be taking out the two birds with one stone."

"What makes you think you can take us both out?" She uncrosses her arms, narrowing her eyes a bit at the smiling man in front of her. She knew things were about to get real violent, real quick.

"I didn't come alone. Their are six on my team...though I just brought one other knowing I didn't need anyone else." He gives a soft chuckle and smirks.

"Don't think so poorly of us, it just might be your fatal mistake." Mara warns. "Henry, or Draco as you call him, may be a bit on the dim side, but he's much to stubborn to die."

Henry sneezes and wipes his nose. "Ugh...I feel like someone is talking about me." He sniffles.

"Maybe you're just having allergies or something. Lets keep moving, the village is up ahead." Ludwig points.

Argon was on Henry's shoulder and soon starts to growl and glare up at the sky. Henry blinks a few times. "What? What is it Argon? Do you hear something?" He looks at. Argon looks at Henry and waves his arms around, and starts saying something.

His eyes went wide. "LUDWIG WATCH OUT!" Henry runs over and shoves him out of the way, just as a stream of blue fire hit right where he was standing.

Ludwig grunts a bit and groans as he blinks and looks up at him. "What...was that...?" He groans and rubs his head, sitting up a bit.

Henry stands up and looks tense. "Look alive, our first battle is about to begin..."

Ludwig looks confused as he stands up and looks around. "What? Is something about to happen...?" He tilts his head a bit. He suddenly holds up his arms to try and shield his face as a strong gust of wind suddenly whipped up, pushing him back a little bit.

A loud roar comes out from over head. It was Vladimir who was standing on the back of his dragon that was much bigger than normal. Artemis lands on the ground and growls. He stands 17 feet tall on all fours and 36 feet long from the tip of his nose to the tip of his tail.

Henry's jaw drops as he stares up at the dragon and the man riding it. "No way...another Dragon Tamer...no way...I didn't think I'd ever actually meet someone like me...let alone one of them being a Divine Guard..."

"So the rumors ARE true!" Vlad smirks and jumps off the back of his friend, who shrinks back down to his miniature size and hisses at the other dragon and Henry. "Man, I didn't think you were the real deal! But you really ARE a Dragon Tamer." He snorts and smirks at Artemis climbs up to his shoulder.

Henry narrows his eyes. "So...you're like me, huh...well this should be interesting...hey Ludwig, how about you go on ahead. See if you can find the boss."

"What? I don't even know what this person looks like!" He says, looking at him confused.

Henry grins. "Don't worry, you'll know." He nods at him and winks. "Now go!"

Ludwig blinks and nods before running ahead.

Vlad didn't pay him much mind though. He chuckles lightly. "So how about we get this started, yeah?"

Henry nods and cracks his knuckles. "Alright, lets go."

Vladimir smirks and licks his lips, his eyes glinting a bit. "Oh yes. Lets go!" The two charge at each other and rear back their fist's. Their fists slam into each other causing a powerful shockwave and both of them to smirk at each other.

Ludwig pants as he runs through the village, muttering to himself. Where was he even suppose to look?! He stops and pants a bit. He blinks as he hears a commotion and a few people running down the street. He runs the way they were running from and blinks as he stops in front of a house with a crowd in front of it.

"What the...?" He looks at the house, patches of ice covering the outside and, you can't see anything through the windows as it was pitch black, but that didn't make any sense...he furrows his brows. "The Black Death..." He mutters to himself. "He must be in there!" Without thinking, he pushes his way through the crowd and opens the door, a sharp freezing chill came threw, making his teeth chatter and everyone scatter and scream.

"Oh look, we are having the company it seems." Ivan smiles back at Ludwig, holding what seems to be a lead pipe, but he seems to be pulling a sword out of it. "Now what are you doing here. It is being quite the dangerous."

Ludwig blinks a few times and wasn't exactly sure what to say. He knew this was Ivan, one of the strongest Divine Guards...what was he doing here? Right! Duh, he's here for the Shadow Soldier's leader!

This distraction was used as an advantage. Ivan was sent through the wall by some sort of dark shadow force power. Ludwig jumpd a bit, his eyes wide with surprise.

Stepping in view was Mara who glances over at him, brow raised. "Who are you?"

Ludwig blinks a few times. "I-I'm Ludwig! I'm looking...the Black Death..." He clears his throat. Could...this be? No, it wasn't...right?

She raises a brow and before she could say anything, she jumps back, avoiding Ivan's blade.

He starts to laugh. "Well you are quite strong~ It will not be easy killing you..."

"As I said before, don't underestimate us. It may have been ten years since we've been on duty, but that doesn't mean we've grown weak." She glances over at Ludwig. "I suggest you stand back...you're going to get hurt otherwise." She warns the poor confused Ludwig who nods slowly and backs away from the door.

Mara opens her hand and a shadowy dark silhouette envelops her whole appendage. Soon it forms into a sword and materializes. The handle was a jet black, the blade a dark grey color.

Ivan chuckles and holds up his sword. "Oh yes, the Shadow Slicer. It's said to be sharp enough to cut through light itself. A strong magical item. Lets see just how powerful it is."

She narrows her eyes and both lunge forward, blades crossing, creating a loud clanking sound. The sheer force and power of the two crossing blades causes a powerful shock wave that broke the class windows in the house. It also manages to knock down Ludwig who grit his teeth.

"Watch out!" Henry yells as he comes crashing to the ground from up above. He grits his teeth and groans. "Okay...that wasn't fun..." He groans and sits up.

"Henry...? Are you alright?" Ludwig asks, raising a brow, clearing his throat a bit.

Henry groans and sits up. "Well...I've been better...but I'm alright for the most part!" He chuckles, rolling his shoulders. He looks up and glares up at Artemis who was over head. Vladimir was on his back and smirking down at him. "This guy is tough, but I'm tougher! Ludwig! Go evacuate the town! NOW!" He whistles and a large Argon swoops down picking up Henry, taking him up into the air.

Ludwig blinks a few times and nods before getting up and starting the evacuation.

"Oh you're not beaten yet are you? Well now prepare for more! Artemis! Go!" He smirks.

The dragon roars and flew straight at Argon, ramming into him and sending him crashing into the forest. Argon shakes his head, still holding Henry who was safe. Argon spreads his wings and put Henry on his back. He takes back into the sky.

Henry takes out his war hammer. "Alright, Vlad was it? Now it's serious! You're going down! Argon! Go!" He points forward.

Argon roars and flies forward, full speed, eyes narrowing. He opens his mouth, releasing an intense stream of fire.

"Artemis! Get me above him!" His dragon nods and flies upward, avoiding the flames. He flies over head and Vladimir reaches down towards the inside of his jacket and pulls out a flail, though instead of spikes it had ocean blue rocks protruding from it. He then jumps off the back of his dragon.

Henry looks up, his eyes wide. "What the!? CRAP!" Argon growls as he looks up and tries to fly out of the way, but he was to close and manages to land on top of him, just a few feet away from Henry.

"You have your own weapon, and I have mine. Now go!" Vlad swings up his arm and grins as he prepares to attack.

Henry grits his teeth and spins around to face him, his war hammer in his hand. "Alright! That's it! You're going down!" He charges forward, ready to strike him with the axe part of his weapon.

Vladimir swings his arm down, the round striking head with the sharp stones coming out of it, coming toward Henry,.

The skies soon started to darken as the battle between Mara and Ivan rages. With a battle being fought in the sky and one on the ground, it was mass chaos! Which side was going to win? It was very hard to tell.

 **Yep. I know you all had no idea who the leader was xD HAHA! She's an OC of a friend of mine that I love and I'm sure you all will grow to love her too maybe. Anyways! I hope you all enjoyed the chapter! Next chapter I actually introduce Farkas! You might be able to guess? If you read some of my other stuff, he's a character I use in a few of my fanfics ;D So keep reading! Reviews make me happy xD Share! Favorite! Follow! Etc!**

 **Mara: Marlands**


	5. Chapter 5: The Black Death

People were screaming and running out of town. Ludwig guides them and curses lightly under his breath as he looks up at the darkening sky. This was a battle of epic proportion. Ludwig wasn't sure what to do, but he had to make sure everyone in the town was safe and out of harms way.

The swords between Mara and Ivan clash once more and and they both jump back. Neither was giving the other an inch.

Ivan gave a soft chuckle and smirks. "You are being the strong opponent I will give you that. But I won't let you beat me."

"This has been going on for awhile now Ivan. I think it's time we put an end to this fight." Mara says, her eyes narrowing a bit.

"Funny, I was thinking the exact same thing. Now, I think it's time to put you on ice." He raises his foot and slams it down on the ground. Ice starts to quickly spread and cover everything in its.

Mara narrows her eyes and looks at the quickly spreading ice that would engulf her house within a matter of seconds. She needs a way out and fast. She backs up slowly and looks around for a means of escape. A window! She makes a mad dash to the window before the ice can cover it. She jumps through the glass, smashing through it with her body and back flips on to her feet. She slides back a bit on the ground. Soon enough the whole house was frozen in solid in a thick layer of ice.

Ivan pouts a bit when she manages to escape his ice fortress. "She is good, I'll give her that, but she's not going to be getting far..."

Up in the air, Henry and Vlad were still fighting on Argon's back. Henry swings the axe half of his war hammer at Vladimir, but he jumps back and avoids it. "You're a fast one, I'll give you that..." Henry admits. "Now we're ending this! Argon!" Henry looks back towards his dragon's head.

Argon glances back at him and nods.

"What are you planning?" He raised a brow. His hands tighten around his weapon, ready for anything.

Henry grins and waves. "Bye bye." Henry sticks his tongue out at him as he jumps off his dragon.

"What the?!" He blinks, looking down at him and slowly looks over. Argon has his mouth open, fire covering the inside of it. His eyes went wide. "Damn it! ARTEMIS!"

Artemis swoops down and opens his mouth, releasing a stream of blue flames toward Argon as he releases his flames at Vladimir. Vlad jumps off his back, avoiding Argon's attack and Argon flies out of the way, just barely avoiding Artemis'. Both dragons swoop down and catch their respected tamer before they hit the ground.

Henry grits his teeth. "He's a lot tougher than I thought he'd be..."

Vlad smirks a bit and chuckles. "He's a lot more skilled than he looks...he's going to be hard to kill...but we can't fail are mission!" He nods. "I think it's time we go full out Artemis." He smirks and chuckles a bit.

Artemis nods and lands on the ground, letting Vlad jump off. With a puff of smoke, Artemis was small once more and Vladimir picks him up.

Argon swoops down and Henry jumps off his back. He becomes small once more and Henry narrows his eyes as he picks up Argon, who hissed and growls at the other two.

They both had the same idea and quickly lean their head's back and hold their dragon's by the end of their tail's, opening their mouth's. But before they could drop them, a strong, cold, icy wing was whips up around them and Henry grits his teeth and closes his eyes, sliding back a bit on the ground before falling over.

He sat up, rubbing his head. "What the...?" He looks around and Vladimir was gone... "What the...?" He scratches the top of his head.

"Henry!" Ludwig runs over panting and hands on his knees as he tries to catch his breath. "I found you! Are you alright? Where did that other guy go?" He looks around. "Did you beat him?"

Henry shakes his head and stands up, dusting himself off. "No...it was more of a draw really...I'm guessing he was a Divine Guard...he probably wasn't alone either..."

"He wasn't." Out from the bushes steps Mara. "Good to see you both again." She nods at Henry and Argon.

Henry blinks and laughs as he gets up and pulls her into a hug, lifting her up off the ground. "Mara! It's so GREAT to see you! Oh it's been forever! You haven't changed a bit!" He chuckles lightly. "Though your hair grew out a bit, either that or you shrunk! Hahahaha!"

With that last remark Henry now had to try to pull his head out of the ground. She sighs and shakes her head. "Now what boggles the mind if why exactly this is happening. It came out of no where...and who are you exactly?" She looks at Ludwig.

He clears his throat and straightens himself out. The leader sure wasn't what he had expected. A young woman probably at least five feet in height. But she did manage to go toe to toe with one of the strongest Divine Guards. "My name is Ludwig! I well...I asked Henry for help because things in the kingdom are falling apart! Something is going on and I needed help! So...so I tried looking for the Shadow Soldiers..."

She raises a brow. "You expect a group of assassins to help you with bringing the kingdom back to its former glory?" She crosses her arms.

"Well you all use to work for the king, right? So...I was just well, hoping maybe not put it back to its former glory, but maybe at least, help me try to figure out what's going on...I just KNOW something isn't right..." He clenches his fists and looks down.

She stares at him, mulling over the thought. She sighs heavily and closes her eyes. "Fine...if Divine Guards are going to be coming after myself and my former associates, then it can't hurt to come along and try to figure this out."

Henry pulls his head out from the ground and jumps up. "Yay! Now we have our leader! This is gonna be sweeeet~!" He grins and laughs.

"Now, do we know the whereabouts of anything else?" She raises a brow.

"Well, besides Farkas being in some prison, no. I haven't heard from anyone else since we were disbanded to be honest. So I guess we can start with Farkas?" Henry shrugs.

Mara rubs her chin in thought. "Well...I have a feeling he can get himself out once he hears what's going on. So we just need to really pick him up. Now, before we head out, I need to receive something." She turns to walk away.

"Are you sure this Farkas can break himself out...? He is in one of the most fordable prisons we have, so it won't be easy. I would think he'd need your help breaking out." Ludwig ads, rubbing the back of his head.

"We will go to said prison to meet him, but I'm sure he won't need our help breaking out of there. Dunlin Prison is guarded with quite a few Divine Guards, not to mention high ranking Knights, so it won't be easy for him to simply break out. But I am positive he can handle it. We will go in just in case. Don't worry." Mara didn't really think he was going to have difficulty breaking out, but it has been ten years and all.

"Ludwig! My friend! Don't worry about it buddy~" Henry chuckles and pats his chest. "Farkas is a lot stronger than you might think. He can break himself out if he wants to. Don't worry about him. When we get there, I'm sure he'd already have broken himself out. Dunlin Prison...that's what? Maybe two days if we ride Argon there?"

"We leave in fifteen minutes, so make sure you're ready to leave by then." She starts to walk off. "One more thing needs to be taken care of..."

Ludwig blinks and was about to say something, but Henry pat his back and shakes his head. "Just give her some time. She just needs to get ready to leave."

"So...Henry, quick question, exactly how long can your dragon stay in such a large state...?" He tilts his head a bit. It was his first time seeing his dragon in such a large state.

"Oh! Well if he's not fighting or anything he can stay like that for really, as long as he wants. After he sustains a lot of damage then he turns back into his small form. It's just way more convenient if he stays this small. A lot easier for me to swallow and for him to hide if needed." He chuckles lightly.

Ludwig nods slowly. "Oh. Good to know then."

Mara holds her hands behind her back, thinking about her current situation. She didn't think this would happen, well to be honest, she had a feeling it would one day, but it came sooner than she thought. At least she had a good ten years of peace. Now she needs to get back into the swing of things. Its been ten years, but she's sure her skills haven't gotten rusty. She walks up to a rock and pushes it aside. Under the rock was a hole with chest in it. She pulls it up and opens it, sighing a bit at the memories the contents held.

inside the chest she pulls out her old outfit. She changes her clothes into a pair of black pants, a black vest over her white button up shirt as well as a long black trench coat that stops just below the knees. She then puts on a pair of white gloves and adjusts herself a bit.

"Never thought I'd be putting these things on so soon...but it seems my kingdom needs me and I can't turn a blind eye to all of this..." A dark shadowy aura starts to emanate off of her. She glances back at the boulder and holds out her hand towards it. All the shadow energy moving to her hand and forming a sort of blob that covers her gloved hand. She clenches her first, causing the shadow around her hand to compress and turn into various sharp spikes that shoot out at the boulder, going right through it.

The boulder crumbles and falls apart, a light cloud of dust and dirt filling the spot where the boulder once was. She nods in approval. "Still a bit rusty, but with some training, I'm sure I'll be back to normal." She walks back off to meet with the others.

Meanwhile Ivan and Vladimir were going to meet up with the others at a disclosed location. Vladimir looks a bit upset he didn't get to go full out against the other Dragon Tamer.

"I was SO close to beating him! I just know if we went full out I'd be able to beat him!" He waves his arms around and groans. Artemis nods in agreement and climbs on top of his head, getting comfy on top.

Ivan chuckles softly. "Now now, don't worry, you'll have your chance again. But first we must come up with plan and see if we know where the other members are." He smiles and claps his hands together.

He sighs and nods. "Yeah I know..." He continues to pout then looks down. That Henry was a lot stronger than he expected him to be. He can see why he was a member of the Shadow Soldiers.

They soon stop at a remote cabin in the woods and open the door. Sitting inside were the other members of the group who were just waiting for the other two to report back.

Allen throws his arms up in the air. "Hey! Look who's back? How was the fight?" He grins, leaning forward a bit in his chair.

Vlad sighs a bit. "Well...they're a lot stronger than we gave them credit for. Especially since it's been ten years, but it was pretty thrilling! I mean I almost thought I'd end up being the one killed!" He chuckles lightly. "But I think we can take them on."

Allen grins big and jumps up. "Awh now my blood is PUMPING! I can't wait for this! When is it gonna be my turn?!" He whines and jumps up and down.

"Please, can you calm down? You're acting like an overexcited dog. Have some class." Roderich sighs, shaking his head a bit as he takes a sip from his teacup.

Allen growls and glances at him. "One day I'm going to rip out that tongue if yours, you know that?" He glares at him, baring his sharp canines towards him and clenching his fists.

"Come on! We're all apart of the same team here!" Feliciano says, waving his arms around and looking between them frantically. "We need to focus on the enemy and taking them down! Right?" He smiles between the two.

They both turn away from each other and cross their arms. Feli sighs in relief when they stop their bickering.

Monika shakes her head. "Now, we've managed to gather some information on one other Shadow Soldier. The one they call Doctor. It seems he's being held in a mental institution. He's been there for what seems to be about six months."

Ivan raises a brow. "Mental institution? Do you know why he was sent there?" Curiosity peeks through his eyes as he wants to know more about his situation.

"Well." Roderich goes on to say. "It seems he was found attempting some sort of experiment on a farmer's daughter and when asked why he simply replied, 'To get to know her better'. So he was deemed insane and sent there. That's all we know about him though."

Ivan rubs his chin in thought and hums softly. "Now...since we have one in lock down and the other in a mental institution, what do you all think our best bet would be?"

"I say we go check on Farkas! I doubt he'll be stayin in that prison for long." Allen chuckles lightly and smirks. "If he's as crazy as an animal as the rumors say he is, then once he gets a whiff of what's happening, no cell is gonna hold him for long."

Ivan hums and chuckles, giving a nod. "I believe you're right about that. How about you, Roderich, and Feliciano go and check on him, to make sure he does not go causing any trouble for those poor people."

Allen grins and chuckles. "Alright, sounds good to me~"

Roderich sighs, but agrees. "Well if I must, then I suppose so..."

"YAY! This is going to be fun! Oh I can't wait!" Feli smiles wide and claps his hands, bouncing up and down and squealing.

"Vlad, Monika, you two are being the coming with me. Then we will go and check up on this...Doctor."

Monika nods as she stands up and salutes. "Yes sir!"

Vlad smiles and nods. "Yes sir! Understood!" He grins and Artemis nods and does a little salute.

"Good! We leave soon, so get yourselves ready." He nods and turns on his heel, heading back outside.

Allen rubs his hands together and grins. "Well let's get going team!" He laughs and throws his arms up.

Roderich rolls his eyes. "If we have to...this is going to be a long trip..."

Feli bounces up a down. "Oh! We can get to know each other better this way! It'll be a very fun trip! I know it!"

"Alright Farkas! Here we come~" Allen smirks.

Not to far away, in Dunlin Prison, a heavily guarded prison with many high ranking knights and three strong Divine Guards. Inside the stone cold cell, behind a heavy steel door, with two knights guarding each side of the door, was a man sitting down. Cuffs on his wrists and ankles. Chains connected to the floor, connected to his cuffs. He was a pretty hairy guy, body hair covering his torso, arms, legs, and a heavy beard over his face. His magenta colored eyes glance over at the door, his sensitive ears picking up the conversation.

"Did you hear? Rumor has it every Divine Guard out there are trying to hunt down the Shadow Soldiers. I hear they're going to take care of Farkas that's in this here cell." One knight said to the other.

He nods and snorts. "About time someone put the guy to rest. He's been trapped here for what? A good seven years?" He shakes his head. "He's to weak to fight back, especially without his special belt."

thr other guard laughs and shakes his head. "He's been in there longer than that actually. You started guarding this place seven years ago. He's been stuck here since I've been working here. It's been ten long years since he's set foot out,of his cell."

The first guard whistles. "Wow. And to think the guy's never gonna get the pleasure of seeing the outside world again real soon."

Farkas blinks a few times as the two share a laugh. "Hunt...down...us...?" He tilts his head a bit. "That's not good..." He slowly stands up. He didn't have a shirt and just dressed in a pair of old dirty shorts. His long, thick, coarse, black hair stops by his shoulder blades. He had a hair tie around his wrist and he used that to put up his hair in a ponytail. Scars littered all over his upper body, covering his chest, sides and back. He had a scar over his nose and one over his left eye. He had three others on his face but his beard covers them.

"I think it's time to finally break out...looks like I'm needed..."

 **Hello everyone! I hope you all enjoy this chapter! And sorry the fight scene was t that exciting, but don't worry as the story goes forward, more and more epic battles shall happen! And I can now introduce who Farkas is!**

 **Daniel: 2P!Male!Hungary**


	6. Chapter 6: Jail Break

A soft knock comes from inside the cell. The guards blink and look at each other before looking back at the door. "Uh...what is it Farkas?" One of them asks.

"I'm gonna give ya two options...you either let me out, or I break out...and my name is Daniel, stop calling me Farkas all the time." He grumbles.

"You can't break out! You're chained up in the-wait...how can you be at the door if you- uh oh. ALERT THE DIVINE GUARDS! NOW!" He grips his weapon and turns toward the door.

The other knight looks at him confused and just then, the door shoots through the air, hitting the wall, a huge dent in it. Daniel walks out, chains dangling from the cuffs where he bit part of them off. He was over six feet tall and looks between the two. "Now which one of you am I gonna have to get through first..."

The guard who was confused grits his teeth and runs off to alert the Diving Guards, who help watch over this place.

The knight that stayed glares at him and points his spear at him. "Hold it right there! You're not going any further!"

He raises a brow. "Is that right..." He cracks his knuckles and rolls his shoulders. "Well fine, if that's what I have to do Just remember, I've been locked up for ten years, so I'm a bit rusty."

The knight moves back a bit and yells as he charges forward, spear ready to stab Daniel in the heart.

~o~o~o~o~

"Did any of you hear that large bang?" Another knight asks a whole group who all look confused and hadn't heard anything.

Suddenly they turn around as part of the ceiling above them came crashing down. The knight from before was passed out in the rubble, bleeding from the nose and mouth, a few missing teeth, his body twitched and he coughs out a little blood. They all look surprised and scared. What could have done this to him?

Then dropping down from the above floor was Daniel. He cracks his neck and looks at the ten guards who were stunned and weren't sure what to do. 'Now...any of you know where I can find my stuff? I'm gonna need it..."

They didn't answer as they all readied their weapons. "Come on men! Their is only one of him! We can take him down! Let's go!" They all charge forward, ready to attack.

~o~o~o~o~

"Are you both ready?" Mara said to the two.

Henry nods and salutes. "Oh yeah for sure!" He grins and pat the now large Argon on the back. "Now let's go!" He nods and hops on the back of his dragon.

Ludwig climbs on his back as well. "Well, I've never thought I'd ride a dragon before..." He mutters.

Mara hops on and points forward. "Now...let's go!" She declares.

"Hi ho Argon! AWAY!" He laughs as his dragon took off into the air. Henry sighs happily and leans back, smiling happily at the fond memories. "Makes you think back to the good old days, huh?"

Mara blinks and crosses her arms, thinking back on the memories. "It does stir up a few memories...it was the fastest way to travel from time to time...I'm sure Farkas is still as powerful as he was back ten years ago..."

Henry chuckles lightly and grins. "Maybe even more so!" He throws his arms up in the air.

"So...you use to all ride on a dragon...?" Ludwig asks, a brow raised in curiosity.

Henry chuckles. "Well, not EVERYWHERE, but usually yeah, or to someplace CLOSE to where we were suppose to be. It was great for making a dramatic entrance! But sometimes we needed to be stealthy."

"Hm, some were better at it than others..." Mara comments.

Henry sweatdrops a bit. "I uh...well you know! We all have our strong suites and all! I was pretty decent at hiding though! Keeping to the shadows!"

"You know, it's quite amazing...the Shadow Soldiers were put off as some sort of myth, but you all actually exist. It's really amazing, I mean when I started out on this mission of mine, I wasn't sure if I would be successful in it, but I'm glad I found you all. I am also glad you all are helping me out."

"Awh don't think much of it!" He grins and gives a thumbs up. "It's like fate you found me! Because of you, I get to gather all my friends together again! I mean, I loved my regular life, but I missed everyone...we all sort of lost touch with one another and...that wasn't really nice...but hey! We're gonna get the gang back together and help the kingdom once again! It'll be GREAT!" He throws his arms up and laughs.

"Well, I don't know about fate, but we are meant to be come together once more as a group...their is something a bit...strange going on now a days and I believe we are the only ones who can help at this point...let's hurry and get to Dunlin Prison, who knows how much trouble that man has gotten himself into by now."

~o~o~o~o~o~

All ten men were sprawled out on the ground, bruised, bloody, and passed out. Daniel walks away, grumbling as he looks around, scratching the top of his head.

"Where the hell are they keeping my stuff, damn it...I need my belt...meed my gauntlets...need to get out of this hellhole..." He sighs as he looks around and saw a door. "Could this be it?" He tilts his head as he opens it. He was met with a Divine Guard who frowns at him. He was currently holding up Daniel's belt with a silver buckle containing a wolf carved on it. This Divine Guard has a suit of armor on, and a sword attached to his hip, along with cape on his back.

"Farkas...you sly dog...what makes you think you're just going to take this and leave?" He smirks and shakes his head. "Of course not. You'll have to beat me first you overgrown mutt." This man was well built and strong looking. His green eyes full of riotous justice, and his soft, short, brown hair combed a bit to the side.

Daniel blinks and and sighs a bit. "Fine...but I don't think you realize what you're getting yourself into..." He growls, his teeth sharpening a bit and poking out his mouth, his nails growing and hardening into claws, his hair on the side of his head grew out a bit longer, forming sideburns.

He raises a brow. "Even without that belt, you still retain some ability to alter your physical form I see...you've been using this thing for a long time..."

"I've had it since I was a sixteen...I'm in my forties now...so yeah...I can manage this without my belt...but I still need it to release my true power. Now, give it back...then tell me where my gauntlets are." He bares his sharp teeth.

He snorts and shakes his head. "You've been in this prison for ten years now Farkas, I know everything about you. Remember, I'm a Divine Guard, so this won't be easy...beat me and you get your precious belt back and I'll tell you were your gauntlets are, I promise."

He snorts. "You talk to much..." He crouches down and lunges forward, ramming into him, crushing him against the hard, brick wall. He yells and spits out a little blood, gritting his teeth. He drops the belt that Daniel happily picks it up.

"Yo-you bastard..." He grits his teeth. "You're going to pay for this." He slowly stands up, coughed up a little more blood. He drew his sword. "Prepare to pay! With your LIFE!"

~o~o~o~o~o~

"There it is." Henry whistles as Argon flew towards the prison. "Now we should be careful! Who knows what we might encounter." He smiles.

Mara nods in agreement. "He's right. We have to be careful.

Argon lands on the ground, a few feet away from the door.

Ludwig jumps off the back and looks around. "It seems...a bit empty...shouldn't there be guards outside of this place or something?" He set his hands on his hips, looking up at the large building.

"Maybe he's caused more trouble than we thought." Henry crosses his arms, thinking about what could be going on in there.

Mara rubs her chin in thought and hums. "We should hurry inside. Who knows what could be going on in there."

They both nod and Argon shrinks back down and made his way up to Henry's shoulder where he was comfy. Before they could move forward though, a loud cracking sound echoed around them.

"What was that?" Ludwig asks as he looks around.

"Hold it right there Shadow Soldiers!" A female voice calls out and from one of the towers a woman jumps down. She holds a whip and smirks at the small group. "Well...Shadow Soldiers and friend. I can't let you go any further than this." She chuckles lightly. Her long wavy orange hair covers her left eye. Her one visible dark green eyes glimmers with excitement.

Mara raises a brow. "Well it seems this won't be as easy as I thought...though I am not surprised..."

Henry moves in front of her and smiles. "Don't worry! I got this." He winks and chuckles lightly. "You guys go on ahead, I'm sure I can handle her."

Mara looks up at Henry and nods. "Alright, keep her distracted while we go inside."

Ludwig blinks. "Alright, you just be careful Henry." Ludwig nods at Henry who gave him a thumbs up and grins.

She cracks her whip. "Oh no, I can't let any of you inside. So why don't you stick around." She cracks her whip, then swings it towards Mara and Ludwig. He narrows his eyes, swiftly taking out his war hammer and runs between them and the whip, blocking the attack.

"Just you and me, let's have a little fun." He chuckles and inhales deeply, the spikes on his collar starting to turn red before he could finally release a stream of fire towards the woman.

Her eyes go wide as she jumps in the air, avoiding the fire. "Well I've never seen someone do that before."

Ludwig and Mara take the chance and run inside.

She curses under her breath as the two manage to get past her. She lands behind Henry and glares at him.

"Damn it! Look what you made me do! Fine, I'll play with you, then I'll go get the other two." She cracks her whip, letting it wrap around Henry's ankle.

"Uh oh." His eyes go wide.

She smirks and swings him around, making him get dizzy then releases him, causing him to crash through some trees. He groans and slowly lifts up a bit. "Ooowwww..." He rubs his head. "Okay...so she's not playing around..."

She laughs and shakes her head. "Please tell me you've got something better up your sleeve."

Henry shakes his head and stumbles out from the tree line. "That's it!" He inhales deeply, the spikes on his collar slowly starting to glow. He then releases a stream of fire straight at her.

"Oh, talk about have hot breath. " She jumps high into the air, sailing over Henry. She smirks and cracked her whip, causing it to wrap around his neck.

"Da-damn it! Really not...liking...this whip...!" He grit his teeth. "Argon, do something!" Argon blinks and spreads his wings and flies up.

She lands on the ground, pulling the whip tight and laughing. "You're not much of a challenge you know." She then starts to spin him around once more, laughing loudly. Henry yells, getting dizzy once more.

~o~o~o~o~

"Do you have any idea where he might be?" Ludwig asks as he follows behind Mara.

"Not exactly, but I have a strong feeling that he will end up finding us rather than us finding him." She suddenly stops and squints her eyes.

"What's the matter? Is something up ahead?" He asks, tilting his head a bit.

"Ssshhh..." She holds up her hand. "There is someone close by..." She glances back to him.

Suddenly a chuckle echoes around them. "Quite the perspective eye you have there young lady~ But it's to be expected..." A little ahead of them, someone appears as he was blending in with the wall. "A pleasure to meet you."

Mara narrows her eyes a bit. "A Divine Guard I take it..."

He chuckles and nods. "You are correct ma'am." He was wearing a suit of armor that resembled a chameleon. "Now I take it you're here to break out your friend. I can't let you do that...he's already caused a ruckus and needs to be taught a lesson. But first I'll deal with you too." He smirks as he fades and disappears.

"Where did he go?" Ludwig looks around, stepping closer to Mara, their backs touching. "His armor must allow him to turn invisible...this isn't good..."

She hums and looks around. "Ludwig, I want you to go find Farkas..."

"What?" He looks back at her, confusion written all over his face. "Me?"

"Right, you. I can handle this man, but you need to go find him, then tell him it's time to go. I'm sure you'll be able to find him."

"Right...now, what does he look like exactly...?" He questions.

"He's big, he's hairy, and he has a short temper. I'm sure he's somewhere around here breaking something, now go!" She nudges him a bit.

He nods and makes a run for it. "Not so fast!" A voice calls out and the Divine Guard appears behind Ludwig, knife in hand, ready to slice his neck. But before he could do anything, Mara appears behind him, a blade to his neck.

"Not so fast." She said in a deadly serious tone. "GO!" She yells to Ludwig who nods and makes a break for it, turning a corner and running down the hall, though he had no idea where to start actually looking.

~o~o~o~o~

Henry pants and rubs his red and sore neck. "Man...she sure is tough..." He whistles and Argon swoops down, in his large form. Henry jumps on his back.

"HAHA! RUNNING AWAY?! NOT GONNA HAPPEN!" She grins and cracks her whip around Argon's ankle before he got to far away. She holds on to her whip tight as she was taken up into the air.

Henry looks down and grits his teeth. "Come on, she's really stubborn..." He grips his war hammer and inhales deeply, the spikes on his collar slowly glowing red.

She climbs up to Argon's back and unwraps her whip from around the dragons ankle. Her eyes went wide as a blast of fire was heading her way. She curses under her breath as she jumps off his back, not having any other choice.

Henry grins and crosses his arms. "Showed her not to mess with me!" Before he could get to big of a head, Argon screeches and squirms around a bit. Henry looks back to see she had whipped her whip and it was tight around his dragon's neck.

She swings up and lands on his neck and smirks. "Now, where were we?" She smirks at him.

Henry laughs nervously and gulps a bit. "Oh boy...uh...mind if I ask what your name is...?"

She giggles and winks. "You can call me Willow~ You've been a very bad boy and I think it's time you learned a lesson."

Henry blushes lightly and gulps. "I don't like the sound of that..."

~o~o~o~o~

"You can't hit what you can't see!" The sneaky guard laughs as he appears out of thin air, right behind her, blade ready to cut her.

She spins around, metal hitting metal as sparks fly, using her own blade to block his. "Now, tell me, what's your name...you know mine, it's only fair I know yours."

He chuckles lightly and smirks. "My name? Well you can just call me Cam." He chuckles and fades into his surroundings. "Though you won't need it where you're going!" He laughs as Mara looks around.

"Honestly..." This 'Cam' fellow, was getting on her nerves with his disappearing act...quite the annoying man he was.

~o~o~o~o~

Daniel grit his teeth as his enemy slams him back into a wall, coughing out a little blood. He grumbles as he tries putting his belt on around his waist.

"Stop right there!" Daniel curses as he avoids getting his head cut off by a sword. "You're not putting on that belt! So you better just stay still!"

Daniel growls and lunges at him, teeth out, ready to snap. The Divine Guard puts up his arm that Daniel bites down on, growling and denting the armor piece. He quickly slips his arm out as Daniel bites down hard enough to crush the armor piece like it was nothing. He spits it out and finally manages to put on his belt.

"Da-damn it!" He grit his teeth and grips his sword. "So you have your belt. But you don't have your weapon." He pants a bit and glares at him.

Daniel grunts a bit as he grips the buckle. "I may not, but you're in for a world of pain." He growls and the eyes on the wolf start to glow red. Daniel's eyes glow red as well as his body expands, his bones start to crack and re-shape, black fur pushing through his skin like needles, face elongating into a muzzle, ears start to point, his teeth grew longer and sharper nails hardening and turning sharp like claws. He wasnearly two whole feet taller, more muscular, his eyes snap open, revealing a brilliant gold. He pants and growls, fur as black as the night sky, eyes filled with rage and adrenaline. He leans his head back and howls with such power it shakes the room.

 **Hahaha! YES! So there we have Farkas! I'm sure you can all guess that not ALL Divine Guards will be Hetalia characters. But I hope you all enjoyed! Stay tuned for another awesome chapter! I think next chapter introduces another Shadow Soldier too! I bet you all can't guess who the others are. Muwahaha~!  
**


	7. Chapter 7: The Escape

Ludwig stops and pants as he looks around, not sure where to go. "Where am I even suppose to begin looking for him?" He groans and rubs his temples.

Before he knew it, a body came crashing through the wall from his left. The body lands to the right of him and looked pretty beat up, slash marks over his arm and armor torn from different areas.

"What...the...?" Ludwig furrows his brows and then slowly looks over to his left, hearing a low, feral, growl.

A mighty beast that resembled a wolf, but also a man, a werewolf if you will. He growls and his claws twitch, a little blood visible on the razor sharp nails of his. He didn't seem to notice Ludwig at all right now.

"Y-you...damn MONSTER!" The Divine Guard winces as he slowly gets up. "This is far from over. Now! Prepare yourse-" He grunts as a paw like hand shoves his head deeper into the wall.

"You talk to much..." He spoke, much to Ludwig's surprise. "Give up already, I still gotta look for the rest of my stuff ya know..."

Ludwig didn't know what to do or say at the moment. He gulps a bit and takes a deep breath. "Farkas!"

The wolf beast, which was indeed Daniel thankfully, glances over at him, his ears twitching. "Yeah? What do you want?" He seemd less than enthusiastic as he looks at Ludwig.

"I-I've come...with the rest of the Shadow Soldiers! To free you and...well help if I can."

He looks up in thought and nods. "Well, I do need my weapon...if you can find that, that'd be a big help."

"Do...you have any idea where they might be...?" He really didn't wanna go running around aimlessly and looking for it. Some sort of hint would be nice.

"Not a clue. I'm sure it's somewhere on this floor though, so have a look around, huh?"

Ludwig sighs heavily and hangs his head down a bit. "Right...I'll find them for you..." He ran past him and now searches for some sort of room where they might store weapons.

~o~o~o~o~

Mara was having trouble dealing with the disappearing Divine Guard. He was very quick and hard to keep track of at the moment. Mara was having a hard time landing a blow on him.

"Damn it..." She mutters under her breath as she misses another chance to slash him with one of her hidden blades.

He shakes his head and appears behind her. "Come on, you're the leader, aren't you suppose to be strong? This is much to easy. Those ten years must have dulled your abilities." He sighs and shakes his head.

"I will admit, you're a hard target. But everyone has their weakness." She figures her eyesight is more of a hindrance at the moment, so she takes out a blindfold and wraps it around her eyes and takes a deep breath, focusing on her other senses.

"Oh come now, you're not going to win like that." He blends into his surrounds and his chuckle echoes a bit before everything goes silent.

Mara inhales deeply, the faint scent of metal in the air, it came from right in front of her, the faint sound of a foot hitting the ground, to her right. He was circling her. She could just feel it. He was going to attack from the left.

"YOU'RE DONE!" Like she expected, he reappears to her left, sword high above his head and ready to strike down. She quickly sweeps his legs out from under him, making him gasp in surprise and hit the ground, dropping his weapon. A blade came out from her sleeve and she plunged it straight through his shoulder and into the ground.

"AAHHHHHHH!" He hollers in pain and thrashes around. His armor was meant for camouflage, not for protection, so it was pretty thin. He glares at her, teeth gritting. "You bitch! How could you detect me?! I was invisible!"

She takes off her blindfold. "Simple. I used my other senses. You might be able to hide from plain sight, but you still make noise, though faint and very quiet, it's there. As well as a smell, so if you focus hard enough on those and your movements are simple to calculate."

He growls and glares at her. "Damn it...I should have known the leader of the Shadow Soldiers was smart..."

"Quite. Now." She sets her foot on his chest, adding a bit of pressure to make him uncomfortable. "Where's Farkas."

"You think I'm just going to tell you!? As we SPEAK the leader here is taking care of the damn dog!" He was going to laugh victoriously, but soon a wall close to them cracks and brakes, a body flying through the air, embedding into the solid brick wall.

Mara coughs and shields her face with her arm, covering her nose and mouth. As the dust clears, her eyes widen a bit. Walking from the open hole in the wall, Daniel steps through and shakes out his fur.

"He's a lot tougher than he looks..." Daniel rolls his shoulders and cracks his neck a bit. He blinks and stares at Mara. "Oh...so you did manage to make it in here. Long time no see Black Death."

"And oh so very good to see you too Daniel." She rolls her eyes. "I figured you'd need backup...but it seems you've got things handled."

He snorts a bit. "Yeah...so, anyone else with you at the moment..."

"Well, we also have Draco along with us." She dusts herself off a bit.

He tilts his head a bit. "Really? That idiot? I'm surprised he hadn't gotten himself killed yet...but whatever..." He cracks his knuckles and grunts softly, running his fingers through thenfur on the top of his head. "If he hasn't been killed yet, I'm sure he can last a little longer without us."

"One can only hope." She nods and sighs a bit. "Though he can cause one to worry..."

~o~o~o~o~

Henry was back on the ground and narrows his eyes at his opponent. He glares at her and pants a bit. Dealing damage with her long rage whip was getting really annoying. He twirls around his war hammer.

"Alright! That's it! Time for Spike Bed!" He slams the hammer side of his war hammer on the ground, causing the ground to shake and spikes made of rock to shoot out the ground, making a straight line toward the Divine Guard.

She gasps and jumps up into the air, just barely avoiding the sharp spikes. "HA! You'll have to try better than that!" Argon swings his tail into her, sending her crashing to the ground.

Henry grins. "Thanks buddy!" Giving a thumbs up to his dragon friend, his slams his hammer down on the ground once more. "Mud Trap!"

She groans and tries sitting up, but has a problem as she starts sinking in a pit of mud. She struggles, only making her sink faster. The ground hardens when she sinks down to her neck. "What is this?! Get me out of here!" She growls and glares.

Henry walks over to her. "That's also a special attack of mine~! My war hammer can control all sorts of rock and ground attributes. I even made up cool names for all my attacks. Now if you will excuuuuse me! I gotta meet up with my friends! Come on Argon!"

Argon was surrounded in flames as he flew to Henry, returning back to his small size, resting on his friend's head. Henry runs inside to look for his friends.

~o~o~o~o~

Ludwig stands in front of a door that had a STORAGE label on it. He knew it was what he was looking for! He opens the door and looks around. It had armor plates, some swords, and helmets. Then he saw it.

"Ah ha!" He sees a chest labeled 'FARKAS' POSESSIONS' "This has to be it!" He picks up the chest and runs back, hoping he wasn't to late or anything.

When he reaches the others he set down the chest in front of Daniel and nods. "I managed to find your things sir."

Daniel nods. "Great." Soon fur reseeded, claws turn back into nails, he shortened a bit. Once back to normal, he rolls his shoulders. He breaks open the lock and the chest creaks open. He first pulls out a cloak that was a bit like Allen's, but his resembled a wolf rather than a fox. He also pulls out two leather demi-gauntlets that he put on, they covered his wrists and the back of his hands. They also four, small, blades pointed outward. Inhaling slowly, he takes it all in. Escaping beating the Divine Guard. It was finally time for him to be free. "Alright, I'm ready."

"Hey! Guys!" Henry grins as he runs up to his friends and laughs. "Look! You guys found Daniel too! Long time no see!"

Daniel glances over at the happy man and grunts a bit. "Yeah yeah, it's been forever, whatever. Can we just get out of here already? Also, mind filling me in on what's going on exactly?"

Mara nods and turns on her heel. "Yes you shall be informed at once, but first we should leave."

"Right!" The other three said all together. They manage to take one step forward.

"HOLD IT!" From behind, Cam stands up, gripping the bleeding hole on his shoulder. "You're all wanted by the king! Since you've taken down the other two...it's only fair I try and take you all down myself!" He growls and glares at them.

Ludwig rubs his head. "You know, I don't think that's such a good idea...you're bleeding pretty bad, plus it wouldn't be a fair fight after all..."

Cam growls and glares at Ludwig. "SHUT UP!" He pants and takes a small step forward. "I will end you ALL!"

"Hold it right there! I think that's enough for today." A voice suddenly calls out from behind him.

Cam gasps and spins around, his eyes wide as he sees Allen, Feliciano, and Roderich. "O-oh! Sirs! I...wasn't aware you were all...coming...I was just about...to handle the-them." He nods, feeling light headed. They were some of the strongest Divine Guards and rumor has it the king assigned them to some special task force! To show his respect towards them, be bows in front of them, gripping his bleeding shoulder.

Allen raises a brow and looks over at the small group and grins. "Farkas...as I live and breathe...I've been waiting my whole life to meet you." He chuckles and walks toward him. "I've heard all sorts of stories about you...researched you plenty...I became a Divine Guard just to try and learn more about you! Ohhhh, but we finally meet~" He grins as he stops right in front of him.

Daniel raises a brow. "Really now...what? You a big fan of mine or something?" He sneers and looks down at him. This guy made him feel uneasy and he wasn't sure why exactly. This feeling was starting to piss him off and he already hated his guts. He made sure to keep his guard up just in case he tried something.

Allen chuckles lightly. "I guess you could say that. But really all I want to do is beat you in a fight so I'll be known as the strongest shiftier alive. I always did enjoy a good fight." He laughs and cracks his knuckles. This was his chance! His heart was beating with excitement and his mouth stretches to a wide grin.

Daniel sets his hand on the shorter man's face and shoves him back. "Shut up...you don't wanna fight me, boy. So get lost." He just escaped from his cell and already had to fight his way through this god forsaken place! Like he wanted to fight now. That was the last thing on his mind.

Roderich sighs and shakes his head, ready to draw his sword. "Honestly Allen. You are aware our mission is to rid of them correct? So stop playing around." He grips the hilt of his sword.

"We need to make our escape. Now." Mara said, deadly serious as she raises her hand, holding it forward. "Now we must be on our way. Dark Cover." Dark shadows poured out of her hand, surrounding the small group within a matter of seconds.

Allen growls and gets on all fours. "Oh no you don't!" He wasn't going to let them get away that easily! After all this time! He lunges forward, ready to tackle Daniel as he narrows his eyes. But when he hit the shadows, he fell through, hitting the ground. When he turns around, they were gone. "DAMN IT!" He slams his fist on the ground.

Feliciano was looking over the injured in the hall at the moment, making sure no one was seriously injured. "Well it looks like they have one more in their group...hopefully our group was able to find the other one." He smiles and wraps Cam's shoulder. "We should go back and report."

Roderich sighs and nods. "It seems we weren't even able to stop them...they are a tricky bunch..."

Allen slowly gets up and snorts a bit. "Don't worry...this is definitely not the last time we're going to meet them. I just know it." He grins and laughs. "Oh yeah! I know I can beat the old fart now! I'm ready for this~"

~o~o~o~o~

Mara manages to transport them outside the fortress. Henry whistles and Argon flies up, consumed by fire. He grows and lands on the ground and everyone hurries on his back before he takes off into the sky.

Daniel groans and cracks his back a bit and stretches out. "Oh man, it feels so GOOD to be out of that place!" He yawns and rubs his bearded face. "Ugh...I grew this thing...but I kinda like it to be honest."

"Well...it does go with the whole werewolf look you got going on." Henry chuckles lightly and grins. "So, how exactly did you end up in prison...?" He tilts his head, being a bit curious.

Mara crosses her arms and nods. "I would also like to know how exactly you ended up in prison. Not just any prison, but one of the most secured prisons in the kingdom." She looks less than happy at the big and hairy male.

He groans and rubs the back of his head, clearing his throat. "Well...after we were disbanded and all...I didn't know what to do, so I took a few...special jobs from people...you know, taking out a few bad guys here and there, trying to make a living...one day, some weird guy asked me to deal with this corrupt guard...turned out to be a Divine Guard...killed him, got caught in the act, next thing I know I've been locked up for ten years."

Ludwig rubs the back of his neck. "Well, it is a serious offense to kill a Divine Guard, so I'm not exactly surprised...but you seem to look pretty well for someone who's been locked up for ten years..."

Daniel snorts a bit. "Well it wasn't easy...just gave me enough food to survive...being stuck in a cell for ten years, well I started doing like push ups and sits ups and pacing around a lot...paid off...still have the physic I had back when the Shadow Soldiers were still together..."

"Wait! I have one questions!" Henry raises his hand. "Daniel...what happened to those two big battle axes you use to carry on your back?"

He blinks and growls a little bit, looking off to the side. "They got stolen...okay? So they're somewhere..."

"Stolen...? Really? I mean...you use to love those things..."

"Yes! I know! They were stolen, okay?! I'd have them if they weren't!" He waves his arms around.

Mara sighs and uncrosses her arms. "Well...I'm glad you're with us now. Now we just have to find another member of our group...though I'm not sure where to go from here..." She rubs her chin in thought.

"For now, maybe it would be best to just get as far away as we can..." Ludwig looks behind them, the prison getting further and further away.

Mara stands up and nods. "Right, I think that would be our best bet...Argon! Get us as far away as you can!" She commands.

Henry blinks a few times. "Hey! You can't just tell him what to do ya know! Right Argon?" He looks at his friend and smiles.

Argon looks back at Henry and made a small hissing noise and tilts his head a bit. Henry blinks a few times and hangs his head a bit. "Ah...well he says he'll listen to you...so never mind me."

Daniel rolls his eyes and sighs, lying down on his back and stretching out. "So...for now, we just find someplace safe to land and try to figure things out from there...sounds about right..." He yawns and slowly starts to close his eyes. "Wake me up when we land..."

Ludwig raises a brow. "What? Are you going to sleep now? It's not even close to nighttime you know." He crosses his arms.

Grunting, Daniel ignores him and drifts off to sleep, snoring softly.

"Well, one thing you'll learn about Daniel is that he's super lazy, especially after a fight. So just let him be, it's better for everyone when he's fast asleep." Henry chuckles lightly and pats Ludwig on the back. He knows from experience after all, having been hit one to many times for trying to wake him up.

Glancing back at Henry, Ludwig sighs and decides to let him be and nods slowly. "Well, if you're sure, then I guess you're right..." He mutters under his breath. Seriously, he was suppose to be an assassin and all...he was very impressive back at the prison, but now? Not so much. He looks off into the distance.

He's manages to get half of the Shadow Soldiers together, but they still had a long journey ahead of them. He just hopes that everything ends up working out in the end. He hopes he's doing the right thing.

 **Hello everyone! The next chapter shall really introduce the next Shadow Soldier! I thought it was this one, but it's the next one! I hope you all are enjoying this so far!**


	8. Chapter 8: The Asylum

In the middle of a heavily forested area, Ivan, Vladimir, and Monika walk up to tall iron gates. After a few seconds they soon creak open, a cobble stoned path leading up to a large brick building. The windows were thick and curtains pulled over them, bars covering the outside to prevent any sort of escape. They walk up to the wooden doors and Ivan knocks.

The doors soon creak open and standing there was a nurse, wearing an all white uniform and smiling. "Oh hello! We weren't expecting any Divine Guards! Please, come in." She moves aside and lets them in.

Ivan smiles and nods. "We are being here to talk to a Francis Bonnefoy."

Her expression slowly turns into a slight frightened one. "Oh...him...well, okay, but be mindful, he's...not quite right in the head..."

Ivan chuckles lightly and nods. "Right, so I've heard...but please, lead the way."

She takes a deep breath and nods before guiding the three of them down the hall, passing various rooms where they could here muffled talking and a few people yelling. She stops at thick wooden door, takes out a key from her pocket and unlocks it. The door creaks open and a flight of stairs is revealed.

"He's down there...just keep walking down the stairs then keep straight. You'll reach a steel door. You'll be able to talk to him through that...though I do have to warn you, he's very fond of...women and likes to...well...the things he says are quite...you'll find out..." She averts her gaze, indirectly letting Monika know.

The blonde woman nods. "Thank you so much for your help. Now let's go." She looks at both Ivan and Vladimir.

Without another word, the group heads down the stairs. The walls were made of heavy, thick, stone. Torches hung on the walls to help light the way. They walk for about a minute before stopping at a thick steel door. It has a small window with bars covering it. Then towards the bottom is a slot for a food tray to slide through.

Soft humming came from inside the room. But soon it stops and a soft chuckle comes from the man inside. "Aaahhh, do I have visitors?" A light smirk fills his features.

~o~o~o~o~

The small group lands on the ground, having found a cave to settle in. Though they had no idea where to look next. It was actually quite frustrating to be honest. They were at a dead end and didn't know where to start from here.

Daniel yawns and stretches out, groaning softly. "Ugh...here I hoped I would get a chance to sleep on something soft and warm." He grunts as he falls back and lies on the ground.

"Hey, at least you have a fire to keep you warm. I'm sure it was cold in that cell of yours." Henry says as he pokes the fire with a stick, trying to keep it going.

Ludwig looks over at Daniel who was lying down on his side, yawning. "So...Farkas, how did you end up joining the Shadow Soldier...?" He asks out of curiosity.

"Call me Daniel already, sheesh...and well...I knew Mara back when we were kids. But then...well, let's just say...some things happened and we got separated...she did end up finding me many many years later. She found me and well...asked me to be some assassin..."

 _Flashback_

 _The full moon was high in the night sky, causing a local village great panic and despair. For they had a beast problem. For the past year every full moon lit night, a strange wolf-like creature would come strolling through the village, attacking anyone it may see with its long sharp claws that shine in the bright moonlight.  
_

 _Sitting in a local bar was a hooded woman, taking a sip from her cup. She lowers her hood, revealing herself to be Mara of course. She looks out the window and leaves some money on the table and stands up._

 _"Hey ma'am! I don't think you going out this time of night is right...you see, we have a beast problem...every full moon-" The barkeep begins to tell her.  
_

 _"A beast comes out and seems to pick a fight with anything it sees, is that right?" She asks, glancing back at the man standing at the bar, her grey eyes showing not a hint of fear or worry._

 _He blinks a few times. Surprisingly she knew of the problem they were having. They weren't a big village or anything, so it was strange outsiders were aware of it. "Well...yeah, but how-"_

 _"Simple...it's the reason why I'm here...let's just say, I'm going to help you with your problem. Now have a good night sir." She nods at him and walks out the front door._

 _"Wait! Miss!" He tries to go after her, but the door closes and he grits his teeth. He wants to stop her, she had no idea what she was getting herself into. "Damn it..." He mutters under his breath._

 _The cool night breeze blows past her, making her hood blow up in the wind. She looks up at the round orb in the sky and sighs a bit. Soon a loud howl pierces the night air like a needle. She quickly runs towards the howl, a plan already set in her mind. She quickly makes a sharp turn and skids to a stop._

 _She was met with the sight of their beast. A wolf-like creature, currently lapping up some water from what looked like a horse trough. His black fur a bit shaggy, it had a belt wrapped around his waist, and it wore a pair of old, torn pants. Two fairly large battle axes were in holsters on his back. His golden eyes glance over at the female and narrow a bit. Water drips down from his wet muzzle as he stands up to his full height, towering over her._

 _She looks up at the beast and crosses her arms. "It's been a long time Daniel."_

 _He snorts, a puff of air coming out his nostrils. "Daniel...who do you call me this little girl..." His ears twitch as he tilts his head a bit to the side. His sharp canines that poked out his mouth a bit, shining in the moonlight._

 _She sighs and looks up. "To be honest, I wasn't aware it was you until just know. I just heard rumors of a beast terrorizing a small village and thought I would look into it. But seeing this so cold beast...I know it's you Daniel even under all that mountain of fur and even through your wolf appearance, their is no doubt in my mind it's you. I can look into your eyes and tell."_

 _He gives a light chuckle. "Mara, always the observant one aren't you? Well...I guess you've always been that way...ever since we were kids. You're right, it's me...long time no see."_

 _"It has been a very long time...you've seem to have been through a lot...I was actually hoping for something like this, the beast being nothing more than just a human with a special belt like that." She points at his belt with the wolf engraved in the buckle. "I've read many books about them and I have to admit, I am quite surprised you're one of those people who owns one."_

 _Daniel snorts a bit and crosses his arms. "Yeah well, how I got this is a long story I'm not willing to get into right now...now why exactly were you so interested in this?"_

 _"I've been entrusted with a special mission by the king to create an elite force of assassins. I was going to ask this 'beast' if they'd be interested in such a job." She looks into the eyes of her childhood friend._

 _He groans a bit and scratches his head. "An assassin huh...well, I guess I don't have anything better going on with my life...suppose I have the skills and ability for it too..." He looks up in thought and nods. "Well alright, you got yourself a new member."_

"So it went a little something like that..." Daniel rests his chin on the palm of his hand, thinking all the way back to that time of his life and sighs a bit. "But that was a long time ago..."

Ludwig nods and rubs his chin. "Well, that sure is an interesting story..." He mutters under his breath. "Thank you for telling me this Daniel." He nods.

"Yeah yeah, don't mention it kid." He yawns and lies down on his back. "Now, leave me alone...it's about time I catch some Zs...been a long day..."

"For someone who slept all the way here, he sure looks tired..." He mutters and gives the sleepy male a questionable look.

Henry chuckles lightly. "Well, that's Daniel for ya. He's a pretty lazy guy, a bit rude, and doesn't get along with to many people. But he's a good guy deep down, I promise you."

"Well, if you say so..." Ludwig shakes his head a bit as he stretches and rubs his head. "We should be getting some sleep." He looks outside the mouth of the cave where Mara had been sitting, keeping a look out.

Henry gives a thumbs up. "Don't worry buddy! We'll keep watch just in case we get spotted by someone or something. So go on and sleep." Argon crawls on Henry's shoulder and nods, blowing out a little smoke from his mouth.

Ludwig yawns and stretches, lying down on some moss he found growing near some rocks. He sighs and closes his eyes, watching the fire flicker and sway. The crackling soon helps him drift off into a deep sleep.

Henry smiles lightly at him and looks out towards the night sky. "We'll find everyone else, don't you worry guys." He smiles softly.

~o~o~o~o~o~

"Achoo!" Francis sniffles and wipes his nose. "Ah, pardon me." He chuckles and blows his nose into a tissue. "So, you've all come all this way to try and get me to spill where my other friends are, oui?" He chuckles lightly in amusement. "Because we are being hunted down? Honhonhon~! Well, as much I would ADORE to help, I don't know where anyone is~ I haven't had so much as a letter from anyone for over ten years and all."

"We've been at this for hours, he doesn't know anything..." Monika crosses her arms and sighs heavily. "I don't think he's going to be of use to us sir."

Vlad nods and sighs, setting his hands behind his head. "We've been at this for hours. He's not going to be of any use to us...can't we just take care of him now?"

Monika raises a brow and looks at Vladimir. "I just said that."

"Oh? Did you? Sorry I think I'm starting to doze off..." He yawns and stretches. Artemis yawns as well and curls up on his head.

"Honhonhon~! Oh, you want to take care of moi? Oh I know you're suppose to kill our little group, but I'm much to handsome and charming to die in a place this. Can't I have a fighting chance?"

"Don't worry. We will be taking him tomorrow and be taking care of him then...a sort of execution if you want to think of it like that." He crosses his arms and nods. "Monika, you can handle that can't you?"

She perks up a bit and nods. "Yes sir!" She sets her fist over her heart. "I will be able to handle the task if you wish for me to do so."

"Very good! Now it's time for us to be leaving for now." He looks at Vladimir. "Now, how long do you think it will take for you to pick up the other half of our team?"

Vlad rubs his chin in thought. "Well, on foot...it's about a week to get from here to Dunlin...so about a day to go get them on Artemis." Artemis makes a small hissing noise and nods, propped up on his friend's head.

"Good! Once we are taking care of Francis in the morning, we shall go pick up Allen, Feliciano, and Roderich." He claps his hands together as he's happy with his plan.

"Oh mon Dieu...my first time out of here in six months and it's for an execution? Well, at least I'll get a beautiful woman before I die~" There was a slight purr in his voice. "Oh, I'd love to quite literally, pick your mind~ If you get my tools we ca-"

"Not a chance you sick man." Monika stops him right in his tracks, crossing her arms and narrowing her eyes. "I can see why you're in here now..."

"Oh how you wound me mon cher! I am but a humble man who just happens to enjoy a little dissection. It's all in the name of science! I'm not crazy in the least! How I ended up here was a complete misunderstanding." He sighs a bit dramatically. "I go on a date, sure we had fun and even a little more...fun in her fathers barn~" He chuckles lightly. "Though she soon started throwing up and complained about pains in her stomach. Seems she had an inflamed appendix. Lucky for her I come prepared for any situation~! So I did a quick little surgery. Then her father walked in and saw me holding her appendix and her lying on the ground with stitches over her stomach. I saved her life, but got thrown in here." He sighs and shakes his head.

"Sheesh. You could have taken her to like a clinic or something ya weirdo." Vladimir makes a face of disgust. "Seriously, who does surgery in a barn? And who carries around the proper tools FOR surgery with them?!"

Francis pouts a bit. "Oh your words wound me so mon frere~" He chuckles softly. "But I just thought someone needed to know the truth." He sighs.

Monika sighs and shakes his head. "I think we should take our leave sir." She looks at the leader.

Ivan nods and turns on his heel. "I am thinking you are right. Now come, let us leave. We will be seeing you tomorrow Francis." He chuckles lightly and waves a bit as he walks away, the other two following him.

~o~o~o~o~

Ludwig groans a little as he tosses and turns in his sleep. He was having a strange dream. He was running in a seemliness endless black void. He pants and looks around, not seeing anything. It was actually a bit frustrating to be honest. Then he suddenly stops, a green fire erupting from the ground.

"Ludwig!" A voice calls to him from the fire. It booms with authority.

He jumps a bit, his eyes wide. "Ho-how do you...know my name..."

From inside the flames, a figure wearing a hood emerges inside the flames. "Ludwig...you have a destiny you must fulfill. The balance of power has shifted and thus you and the Shadow Soldiers must help balance it. Dark forces are manipulating the king and if they aren't stopped, this kingdom, and quite possibly this whole world will be in grave danger."

He holds a look of confusion. "What? Destiny? Dark forces? What are you talking about?" He shakes his head a bit. "Sure, I know that something's wrong and I'm going to try to stop it...with the help of the Shadow Soldiers...but...I don't know if I can call it destiny..."

"And how exactly did you get this idea? Trying to re-assemble a band of ex-assassins? I am sure you would have thought of many different ideas to handle the corruption of the kingdom."

"Well..." He looks down. "I...had a dream...and...I heard...something calling to me...it was saying something...I don't fully remember, but I brushed it off...then the next day I ran into some...sightseer of sorts..."

"She told you that you had a strange dream that told you, 'Find the Shadow Soldiers, save the kingdom.' am I correct?"

His eyes went wide and he looks up at him. "We-well yes! But how did you...?" He furrows his brows.

"As I told you, all of this is your destiny. Only you can bring the Shadow Soldiers together and take down this evil force. It will not be easy, but you'll be able to do it. I shall help you a little bit, but I can't get fully involved until you've gathered everyone together. I know you're all looking for another member, but it seems the other group have already found him. You'll all need to hurry and get him before they kill him. He's currently in a mental institution not far from where you are now." A puff of smoke appears out from the fire, showing an image of the mental institution. "So, go to him, before it's to late. They plan on killing him in the morning." The flames slowly start to dim.

"Wait! I have more questions! You can't leave now!" Ludwig reaches forward, trying to catch him. He has a thousand questions! Why him? How did he know about the elderly woman? It was all confusing.

"More shall be revealed once all six have been gathered. For now, go! GO tell the others!" The flames vanish and Ludwig gasps as he sits up, panting heavily. He looks around and rubs his head.

Daniel groans as he sits up and looks over at him. "What's the matter...? You have a bad dream or somethin kid..." He yawns and scratches his head.

"Something the matter Ludwig?" Mara asks, walking over to him and kneeling down next to him.

"Ah...well...I know this sounds...hard to believe, but...I know where to find another member of your group."

The three look at each other, surprise written on their faces, but they lean in, ready to listen. They want to know who they were going to get next.

 **Hello all! I bet you were all surprised who the next shadow soldier was! Yep it is indeed France! Don't worry, he's not really...insane! He just...really likes opening people up. He's a sweet man! Also I bet you're wondering about Ludwig's dream and what that was all about, right? Well keep reading and eventually you'll find out soon~**

 **Francis - France**


	9. Chapter 9: Another Down

It was the break of dawn, the sun just starting to peak over the horizon. Francis was asleep in his cell, smiling softly and muttering under his sleep, holding his pillow. It was a good dream. A happy dream. A dream of good times.

 _"How many times do I have to tell you ya crazy doctor, you can NOT go and experiment on me!" Daniel growls and glares at him._

 _"Oh mon ami! It's not just experimenting! I just...want a liiiittle dissection time! I just want to see if that belt of yours actually has some internal side affects!" He pouts and crosses his arms._

 _The much bigger man growls at him and glares from across the campfire. Mara sighs and shakes her head as she glances between the two._

 _"Please, you're not cutting him open. He wouldn't stop complaining about it. It would save us all the trouble." She crosses her arms and looks over at Francis who hangs his head, but agrees none the less._

 _Daniel sighs and relaxes a bit. "The last thing I need is doctor crazy opening me up..." He mumbles under his breath._

 _"I'm not crazy!" He pouts. "I just enjoy exploring the human body!" He crosses his arms and sticks his nose up in the air._

 _"Come on Daniel! Don't be so mean!" Henry slings his arm over his shoulder. "He's just being him! Nothing wrong with that!" He chuckles lightly. "Now, can we all try and get along?" He looks between the two.  
_

 _Daniel sighs heavily and rolls his eyes. "I guess...alright, fine. I'm sorry for calling you crazy. I didn't mean it, okay?" He shrugs a bit and mumbles under his breath. "Sorry..."_

 _Francis smiles. "Oh mon ami~! Of course I forgive you! Now come here!" He grins and runs over to him and hugs him tight._

 _Daniel blinks and groans a bit, patting his head. "Er...yeah, right...you can let go now Doc...come on..." He feels a bit awkward, but he let's him hug as long as he wants._

A loud knock awakes him from his peaceful sleep. He sighs heavily and sits up in his bed. He stretches and sighs a bit. His breakfast slides through the slot on the door. He walks over and grabs the tray and sits down on the cold floor. He runs his hand through his tangled wavy blonde hair. He feels his hairy face and pouts. He really wishes he could shave. They didn't allow him to anything sharp, so he was stuck with a beard for now.

"Mon dieu...how am I suppose to get myself out of this mess...? Am I actually going to die today...? If I do, what about everyone else? Are they going to be alright without moi?" He sighs and looks down at his food, poking it with his fork.

A soft knock comes from the door before someone spoke. "So, Mr. Bonnefoy...any last requests before your execution?" A worker asks from the other side of the door.

Francis looks up in thought and chuckles. "How about my belongings? As well as a razor and some shaving supplies?"

The man on the other side sighs a bit. "Alright, sure. I'll be back in a minute with your things." The man left from the door.

Francis chuckles and looks up in thought, smiling a bit. "Ah, I am glad I decided to wear my old uniform when they had found me...I knew they'd keep it safe and I'd always know where it is." He smiles at the thought, looking up and chuckling softly.

Soon Francis receives what he requests. First he shaves off his beard, leaving just a few hairs on his chin. Then he put on his old uniform. A pair of dark brown pants, a light blue button up shirt and a doctors coat. He ties up his heavy set boots. Hit footwear look more like something a hiker would wear rather than a doctor.

Coming down the stairs was Ivan, Monika, and Vladimir. Vlad yawns and groans, rubbing his eyes. "Ugh...it's so early...can I go back to sleep after the execution? Please? That'd be great." He whines and Artemis yawns and flops on top o his head.

"Suck it up Vladimir. It's best to do this early so we can get this over with as soon as possible. Then we will have only five of them to deal with." Monika crosses her arms.

He rolls his eyes. "Yeah yeah, I get it Mrs. Serious..." He crosses his arms and pouts a bit.

Ivan chuckles a bit as he glances at the two. "Now do not worry my friend. This should not be taking long."

They walk up to the cell and Ivan unlocks the door, hinges creaking as it slowly opens. Francis was sitting on his bed and smiling.

"Bonjour~ It's nice to see you all face to face. Francis Bonnefoy at your service~" He winks and chuckles lightly. "I suppose I'm going to be your prisoner today, oui?" He holds out his arms.

"...this guy sure is kinda weird if you ask me." Vladimir mumbles a bit as he sets his hands behind his head. "So, can we get this over with already?"

"You're being impatient Vladimir." Monika sighs heavily and glances at him. He seems to always be complaining about something and it was a little annoying to be honest.

Vlad glances at her and pouts. "I'm not being impatient! I just want to hurry this along is all!" He waves his arms around and groans. Artemis nods and crawls down to his shoulder and squeaks. Vlad blinks and smiles, rubbing his dragon friend under the chin. "Awwwwh~ You're much to sweet~"

Ivan snaps his fingers and a pair of ice handcuffs form around Francis' wrists. "Now, let us get going." He looks at Monika. "Do you mind leading our prisoner out, just so he doesn't try and escape?"

"Yes sir!" She salutes and walks over to Francis. "Get up." She demands, staring at him with a slight glare.

Francis chuckles and stands up. "Well, I can't refuse the request of such a young woman~" He winks. "I may be a cold, cruel, assassin, but I DO have a soft spot for the ladies~ Honhonhon." He chuckles and blows her a kiss.

Monika stares at him and takes out her mace. "If you don't get moving, I'm going to bash your skull in right here, right now..." Her face serious, eyes piercing through his soul.

Francis laughs nervously and starts to sweat. "Ah! Right, okay! I'm going~" He starts to walk and pouts. It was rare a women would be able to resist his charm and good looks. It made him a little sad.

He was lead out of the mental institution and he looks around, smiling softly and taking a deep breath. It's been a long time since he's been outside. It felt so nice. The wind blowing through his hair and clean shaven face, the birds chirping and flying overhead. He sighs happily. To bad this was going to be his last moments.

He was then lead to a thick wooden pole in the ground and tied up nice and tight to it. He inhales, taking in all the fresh, clean, air, that he could. "Aaahhh...at least I had a chance to be outside once more..." He chuckles softly.

Monika steps up and holds her mace in hand. "Francis Bonnefoy, also known as Doctor. You are being charged with crimes from your past. The king wishes for your death and as Divine Guards, we are here to bring his wishes to reality. Do you have anything you wish to say?"

Francis hums a bit and chuckles. "Non, not really. I just hope wherever my friends are, they are safe." He sighs a bit, sad he would never be able to see his friends again after this.

Monika nods and starts to spin her mace around, yellow sparks of electricity surrounding it. "This mace has a magical attribute of lightening."

"So you're about to get the SHOCKING of your life!" Vlad laughs and slaps his knee, setting his hands on his knees.

Monika forms a sweat drop on her head and sighs. "Yes...but that joke was terrible...please don't make another one."

Vlad stops laughing and pouts, crossing his arms and mumbling to himself. "No sense of humor...can't even make a pun..." Artemis looks up him and then perks up. He soon starts to growl and climb on top of Vlad's head and hisses. "Huh? What's up Artemis? Something the matter?"

Francis closes his eyes, ready the end to come, but suddenly a loud howl came from what seemed like everywhere. Monika stops spinning her weapon, causing the sparks to stop. A large shadow zooms over them and something fell from the sky and lands hard on the ground, causing a cloud of dirt to rise.

They all cough and and soon the massive figure stands, black fur, pointed ears, and a tail that swishes back and forth were seen. Francis couldn't believe his eyes. It was...

"DANIEL?!" He pulls a bit against his restraints then freezes as something big and heavy lands behind him. He slowly looks up to see the bottom of Argon's chin. He hisses and growls and roars. "ARGON?!"

Henry laughs and jumps down. "Hey Francis!" He lands next to him and grins big. "What's up? We're here to save ya!" He smiles and gives a thumbs up.

Mara lands on the other side of him and nods. "Francis. Nice to see you once again. Seems Ludwig's dream was right. I'm glad we managed to make it here on time."

Ivan frowns. "It seems like our other team wasn't able to stop them...alright! You two! Prepare to take them down! Let's go! We can't allow them to take another member!"

"Yes sir!" Both said at the same times, getting ready for battle.

Ludwig jumps down from Argon and goes behind Francis, waiting for the right moment to untie him.

"Henry, I trust you to take the other dragon user." She glances at Henry.

"Alright, on it!" He grins and whistles. "Alright Argon! Let's go up in the air!" He jumps up on his back and his dragon roars before taking off into the air.

"Artemis!" Vlad looks at his trusty dragon who spreads his wings and takes off into the air. He was enveloped in light blue flames and grows larger when the flames disappear. He lands on the ground and Vlad gets on his back. "This is gonna be fun~" Artemis roars and takes off into the air after Argon and Henry.

"Daniel, you take the mace wielder. You think you can handle that?" She asks, even though she already knows the answer to that question.

He chuckles and the blades on his gauntlets extend to their full eighteen inch length. "Oh you bet~" He howls and snarls, lunging forward.

Monika narrows her eyes and jumps up, making Daniel crash into the ground. "Fighting a werewolf...I didn't think my day would change so drastically...but this shouldn't be so hard." She lands behind and glares.

Daniel growls and turns around, standing his full height. He slashes at her with his blades. She manages to dodge every attempt to try and slash her.

Ivan chuckles and draws his blade from the metal pipe he keeps in his jacket. "Well...you are being the very hard to kill now aren't you? You know we can't allow you all to leave this place alive."

Mara's sword forms in her hand and she grips it tight. "You're not going to have much of a choice. We are going to leave here, very much alive." She narrows her eyes.

He gives a soft chuckle and nods. "We shall see about that."

The two charge forward, blades colliding as each tries to cut the other, but manage to block the attack. Sparks fly as steel hits steel and slide against one another.

Ludwig starts to undo the knots from the rope. "Don't worry, I'll have you out of here soon sir!"

Francis glances back at him and chuckles. "Honestly...they somehow knew exactly where I was and came to save me...I feel as though I'm in some sort of dream..." He smiles softly.

"This is no dream, trust me. But don't worry, you'll be out soon, I promise!" He manages to undo the knot and the ropes fall. "There! Got it!" He smiles and nods.

Francis stretches and sighs happily. "Ah~ Much better! Now...it's been a long time, but I suppose I can help out, oui~?" He chuckles softly.

"Looks like we meet again, Draco." Vlad smirks, crossing his arms. "This time will be the last time though." He takes out his flail from his jacket and smirks.

"I highly doubt that." He chuckles lightly. "Alright, but seriously. You can call me Henry. Draco is such an old name ya know. Now! Let's get this started!" He takes out his war hammer from his back and twirls it around before gripping it.

"GO!" They both yell and each dragon roars and fly at each other.

Daniel jumps back, avoiding a thunderbolt that was shot at him. He growls and crouches down on all fours, scratching his foot against the ground. He charges forward and jumps up, rearing back one of his fist and getting ready to strike her. She holds out his hand and catches his fist. Daniel's ears lower. She smirks and starts to spin him around and sending him crashing into a tree. He yelps and groans, hitting the ground and shaking his head.

"Okay...so you're a lot stronger than you look..." He growls and gets down on all fours. "You have a secret?"

"I'm one sixteenth giant on my mothers side. So in short, I have a lot of strength. It happens every so often in my family. So If I were you, I'd try a little harder." She smirks and aims her weapon at Daniel. "Lightening!" A bolt of lightening shoots out at Daniel.

His eyes go wide and he rolls out the way. "Damn it..." He growls and charges forward and jumps in the air, his blades out in front of him.

Monika narrows her eyes and easily jumps back, causing Daniel's blades to dig into the ground. She aims her mace at the wolf-man who retracts his blades and growls at her. She was about to shoot out a bolt at lightening at him, but suddenly her weapon was kicked out of her hand.

Sliding in front of his companion was Francis who smirks and winks. "Now now mon cherie~ I can't let you go and kill one of my friends. Now she seems like a bit to much for you Mon ami. Let moi help~"

Daniel grunts as he stands up and shakes out his fur a bit. "Sure, why the hell not. I don't exactly have my axes, so it's a bit inconvenient for me...try not to get in my way."

"Funny...I was thinking the same thing~ Honhonhon~" He smirks and gets ready to attack. "What happened to them?"

He groans loudly. "They were stolen okay? So I don't have them anymore!"

"Two against one...it's not really fair, but then again, you're both assassins, so I am not very surprised..." She narrows her eyes and suddenly makes a b-line for her weapon, causing Daniel to snarl and run at her on all fours.

Mara and Ivan slide back as they connect sword with sword. Mara charges forward and slices up diagonally, a black streak seemingly follows and quickly fades as Ivan was able to jump back and avoid the deadly blade.

"The Shadow Slicer...a sword that is made up of concentrated shadows forced into one blade...legend says it can cut through both light and dark...forged years ago to help fend off demons and shadow creatures. I never thought it was real to be honest." He chuckles lightly. "How did you acquire such a weapon?"

"You don't need to worry about that. You should focus more on the battle at hand." She lunges, shooting the sword out forward, stabbing him in the shoulder.

Ivan flinches and eyes go wide. Suddenly his shoulder and arm starts to crack until he turned to ice and fell apart. Her eyes go wide at the realization of it being a fake. Ivan suddenly appears behind her, sword drawn back and he swings it, aiming for her neck. She manages to quickly turn and block it but was sent flying back. She manages to slide back on her feet and stop, but it took a lot out of her, causing her to pant a bit.

"Quite the interesting woman you are." Ivan chuckles lightly. "But you're all not getting away." He lunges forward, ready to run his sword right through her.

She narrows her eyes and holds up her hand, a dark energy forming around it. Ivan's eyes grow wide as he stops, his feet sliding against the ground. Mara closes her hand and everything goes black for Ivan. He blinks and looks around trying to figure out what's happening.

Mara whistles and Henry blinks, just missing Vlad as he tries to slice the other man's neck with the axe half of his weapon. He was standing on Artemis' back and nods. "ARGON!" He jumps down and Argon flies under, catching him.

Vlad looks confused and blinks as he watches Henry leave their fight. "Hey! Get back here! Where are you going?!" He looks over the edge of his dragon.

Argon swoops down and lands on the ground. Mara climbs on his back. "FALL BACK EVERYONE! THE MISSION WAS ACCOMPLISHED! LET'S GO!" She yells to her team.

Ludwig nods and runs over, climbing on the back of the dragon. Daniel had just dodged a thunderbolt and Francis lands next to him, looking confused. Daniel nods and grabs him before making a run towards the dragon.

"NO YOU DON'T!" Monika aims her weapon on the two, then shot a thunderbolt at them.

"You're not getting away that easily!" Vlad taps Artemis on the back and the dragon releases a stream of blue fire from his mouth at Argon.

Both attacks were ready to strike there intended targets. Mara raises her hand, dark energy surrounding it. "Dark Void." Suddenly within the blink of an eye a large dome covers her and her team, protecting them from the attacks.

Daniel helps Francis up on the dragon and climbs on himself. "Alright! Let's go! We got Francis!"

"Let's go!" Henry grins and Argon spreads his wings and flies up. An opening opens up for them and they make their escape, the dome around Ivan disappearing as they were getting further and further away.

He narrows his eyes and sheathes his sword. "They are smart...and powerful..." He chuckles in light amusement.

"Should we go after them?" Vladimir asked when Artemis lands on the ground next to him.

Ivan shakes his head. "Nyet...we have to first get the other half of our team...they have sadly added one more to their ranks, a very...smart, yet, scary man...We must regroup and try to find the next member before they do..."

 **Dun dun duuuunnnn! Anyways, we have added Francis! :D I hope you all didn't actually think he was gonna die! That would have sucked you know. Anyways hope everyone is enjoying! Two more Shadow Soldiers left! Anyone wanna take a guess on who the last two are? And if you think this story is close to its end, you have the wroooong idea my 're not even half way there.**


	10. Chapter 10: The Regroup

The Shadow Soldiers had regrouped at the cave they had slept in and now were trying to figure out their next move. Though Francis was celebrating his new found freedom.

"OH MAGNIFIQUE! I feel so aliiiiive~" He sings and spins around, inhaling deeply. He hasn't felt this happy in years! "Oh my old friends coming to save me from being killed~ It warms the heart~!" He laughs and kicks his heels together. "I've been stuck in that god forsaken asylum for six months! Can you believe it?! Someone thought I was crazy..."

Daniel snorts. "I don't blame 'em...you may be a bit...off in the head, but I wouldn't call ya crazy. But it's nice having our doctor back and all. Since we're on this journey of 'destiny'" He says in a mocking tone. He grunts a bit as Francis hugs him around the neck.

"Oohhh~ Still the grumpy wolf that I knew and loved~ Honhonhon!" He grins and let's him go. "Alright! So, what exactly is going on again? Why is the king trying to kill us?" He raises a brow.

Mara clears her throat. "Well...we aren't sure why, but we DO know wanted posters have been given to all Divine Guards, so they know what we look like...though it seems a special force of Divine Guards has been created by the king whose soul purpose is to hound us every step of the way and kill us..." She rubs her chin.

"I don't get it! With all the Divine Guards already doing that, why make a special force? It's really confusing..." Henry scratches the top of his head.

Ludwig hums in thought. "Well...one thought crosses my mind...I suppose it's more of an insurance sort of situation...You have an elite force made up of the strongest Divine Guards in the kingdom. Meaning you have to watch out for them, as well as every other Divine Guard who could meet up with. It's quite the situation." He rubs his chin.

Daniel looks up in thought. "Guess that makes sense. Have every Divine Guard out for our blood, then get the strongest ones follow us around and try to kill us. Fun." He grunts a bit. "Whatever. As long as we get the final two before anyone else does, I think we'll be fine."

"Oh! We are missing Pyro and Diablo now aren't we?" Francis taps his chin and hums. "Sadly, I'm not sure where either of them are...wait, how did you all find out where I was?" He raises a brow. "I hadn't had any contact with anyone from our old group..."

"Well. It seems our friend, Ludwig over here, had some strange dream where he was told exactly where you were and what was going to happen to you if we didn't hurry." Mara explains. "Though it still boggles the mind..."

Ludwig rubs the back of his neck. "We-well...I'm honestly not to sure myself...I barely remember what was happening and what was said, but I remembered where to find him." He points to Francis.

"Honhon~ Well whatever it was, I'm glad it happened! I'm so GLAD to be out of that asylum! They kept me in my own tightly sealed cell in the basement." He pouts and crosses his arms. "I felt like a prisoner! I even grew a BEARD!"

"Hey, if it makes you feel any better, Daniel was an actual prisoner up in Dunlin Prison for the past ten years." Henry chuckles and points to Daniel who growls at him.

Francis' eyes went wide. "Dunlin!? Really Daniel?!" He looks at the hairy man and chuckles. "Honestly, I'm not surprised, but still. You must have done something pretty bad to end up there mon ami..."

He shrugs and rubs the back of his head. "Well...yeah, killed a Divine Guard and all...got caught ripping out his throat. I was full wolf, so yeah. Got thrown in a cell and all. What about you? What exactly did you do?" He crosses his arms.

He chuckles. "Well...honestly, I had to perform an emergency surgery for a young woman I was out on a date with...her father found me holding her appendix...he asked what I was doing so I made a joke and said 'Getting to know her better.' He didn't find it very funny and the next day, some doctors arrived at my house and took me away! Figured that would happen, so I wore my old uniform one more time. But lucky for me, that means I have some of my old weapons~" He grins.

Mara stands up and nods. "Alright. Now we have to figure out where our next destination should be. We have to find another member...the sooner we know where to start going the better..." She rubs her chin. "But with no clues to go on, we can't do anything..." She sighs a bit.

Henry raises his hand and waves it around. "Oh oh! What if Ludwig has another dream! Maybe that'll help!" He gins and bounces up and down. "I mean it worked before, right? Maybe it'll work again! You never know!"

Mara raises a brow. "Henry...I'm not sure we can rely on Ludwig's dreams to help us find our missing teammates. It's illogical. Anyone else have any ideas on how to find either one of them?"

"Maybe e can ask around different towns and stuff? Seems like our best bet to be honest." Daniel shrugs.

"Oh! Or we can get Daniel to sniff them out! I'm sure he remembers what they smell like!" Francis beams at his idea.

Daniel growls at him and pulls Francis into a tight headlock. "Shut up! Just die already you idiot doctor!"

"Daniel no! Let him go!" Henry waves his arms around as Francis waves his arms around and kicks his feet.

Ludwig wasn't really paying attention at the moment as he rubs his chin in thought. Was his dream just a dream? Could it have actually been something...more? Even if he did know exactly what it would he be able to just sleep and have it again? Their were so many questions bouncing around in his head, he didn't know what to think. He falls over and lies on his back, closing his eyes. He hadn't realized how tired he was, his eyelids grew heavy and he was suddenly asleep.

"Huh? Did he fall asleep?" Henry blinks and looks over at the passed out Ludwig and tilts his head. Argon tilts his head as well as he climbed up on Henry's shoulder.

"Let him sleep. Wish I could go to sleep. But noooo it's to eaarrrllyyyy!" Daniel grumbles and let's go of Francis who pouts and rubs his neck.

"Daniel. It's the early morning. You can wait to sleep." Mara sighs and rubs her temples.

"Awh, you're not use to being up this early now are you?" Francis chuckles and pats his back.

Daniel grumbles and crosses his arms. "Oh hush..." He shakes his head.

Meanwhile, in Ludwig's dream he was once again in darkness. It was pitch black and he couldn't see a thing. He walks around, hoping to find something, hopefully a door. But he doubts he was going to be that lucky.

"Hello!" He calls out, his voice echoing. But he didn't get an answer. He sighs heavily. "Look! I don't know, if this is just some dream, or...what! But! I need help! Do you think...that maybe, you can help me figure out where the next Shadow Soldier is! Please?! Any hint would be nice!" He looks around, nothing. He was about to give up, but suddenly green flames erupted behind him, causing him to spin around.

"Ludwig." The booming voice sounds once more. "I am sorry, but I can not help you this time. I was only aloud to tell you the whereabouts of one of the Shadow Soldiers because they were in mortal danger. I can not help you find the last two. But I can assure you that you will find them. All I can tell you is that you should try gathering information in the nearest town."

Ludwig blinks a few times. "But wait! I still have many questions! Why me?! Why is it my destiny?! And how do you know all these things? What dark forces are coming! Please!"

"All shall be revealed once all six are gathered. Now go on Ludwig. You have work to be done." The flames dim out and Ludwig gasps as he suddenly sits up.

Henry yells and falls back as he was looking down at him. "Whoa! Ludwig! You scared me a little bit! What? Did you have another weird dream? Anything we can use?" He tilts his head a bit.

He blinks and rubs his head. "Ah...not...really? But...well, we should go to the nearest town...try to find a lead..." He rubs his eyes a bit, groaning a little.

"Wait but wasn't that my id-"

Mara nods. "That is a smart idea. Now to the nearest town. Come on everyone! We don't have anytime to lose!"

"AYE CAPTAIN!" Henry, Daniel, and Francis said at the same time and salute.

Henry walks outside and Argon jumps off his shoulder and glides to the ground where he grows his to his larger form. "ALL ABOOOOOARD THE ARGON EXPRESS!"

So they all board Argon who takes off into the sky. While on the way there, Ludwig looks at Francis and couldn't help but ask him something.

"So...Francis, how exactly did you end up joining the Shadow Soldiers...?" Ludwig couldn't help but ask. It seems to be his usual question for everyone they find to join once again.

Francis hums and looks up in thought. "Well...let's see...back then, I was the villages leading doctor back where I lived..."

 _It was a nice clear night. In a small village near the base of the mountains was were Francis did his practices. He was the villages leading doctor and just about everyone went to him and the few other doctors always looked to him for guidance. He was currently with a patient in his office._

 _"Now my dear, you will need to stay off your foot for at least two weeks, alright~?" He winks and chuckles at the small child who giggles and nods._

 _"Okay Dr. Francis! Thank you!" She grins big up at him. Her mother picks her up and smiles at Francis before leaving._

 _He sighs happily and waves as they leave. That was his last patient for the night and he was going to relax. He flips the sign on the building to closed and locks the door with his key._

 _"Francis Bonnefoy." A female voice calls out behind him, making him yelp and spin around. Removing her hood, Mara reveals her face._

 _"Ah...oui, that is moi. Now what is a beautiful woman such as yourself doing out this late at night~?" He chuckles softly and straightens himself out and grins._

 _"You seem to be a regular doctor of this small village, but their is something else about you you're not showing everyone." She stares at him with those calculating grey eyes of hers._

 _Francis raises a brow. "Oh? And what exactly am I hiding from everyone?" He smirks lightly, finding this very interesting._

 _"This village has suffered from plenty of grave robberies for a number of years. Bodies being dug up merely hours after being buried. Quite strange. No one has any clue why this is happening or who is doing it."_

 _"Oh? Are you implying that you know who is doing this? Why are you telling me? I'd suggest going to the chief of police with such information mon cherie." He chuckles softly._

 _"You are right. I am aware who is doing this. Though I doubt you want me to go to the police with this information. It wouldn't benefit you any. You would have to try and pack up as much as you could and try to escape."_

 _His face grows serious and he raises a brow. "Are you implying that it is moi who is doing this?"_

 _"That is correct..."_

 _He smirks and chuckles softly. "Well...aren't you a smart girl~ You are correct. I tend to go to the the cemetery and collect samples. The more fresh, the better. It's quite hard doing experiments when not being able to use living subjects, but it's better than nothing I suppose."_

 _"I must ask, what kind of experiments do you do exactly?" She raises a brow, her curiosity peaking a bit._

 _He chuckles. "Well...I do enjoy exploring the human body and figuring out what makes it tick, what it can withstand, what it dislikes, what it likes...each body is a little different. You can really get to know a person by how their body works and what condition it is in when they have died..." He sighs happily, setting his hand on his cheek and leaning on it a bit. "I happen to do various experiments in all honesty."_

 _She nods. "Quite interesting...I have been given the task of creating an elite squad of assassins...having a doctor would be beneficial to the group. So, would you be interested in joining? I'm sure you will be able to get plenty of living subjects if you wish."_

 _Francis looks up in thought and rubs his chin. He gives a soft chuckle and nods. "Well...I don't see why not. It sounds like a fun time~"_

"And that's how I ended up joining." He sighs an smiles fondly at the old memories an sets his hand on his cheek. He smiles softly. It seems like forever since that day.

Ludwig crosses his arms and nods. "I see...so...what exactly did you do with the bodies you er...dug up...?" He really wishes he didn't just ask him that, but his curiosity was peaking.

"Honhonhon~ You don't nee to worry about that~" He winks and smiles at him. "I have to keep my own secrets now don't I, oui~?"

Ludwig sighs in relief. "I couldn't agree more! Right! Feel free to keep it to yourself." He clears his throat and nods.

Argon lands on the ground and looks back at Henry who nods. "Alright! So we've made it to the nearest city! So let's go and see if we can find Pyro!" He points forward and grins.

They all get off Argon who shrinks an crawls up to Henry's shoulder and relaxes there and yawns. Mara nods and turns to everyone.

"NOW! We are searching for any information we can get on our teammate! Someone should accompany Ludwig as he does not know what he looks like and all."

Henry waves his arm up in the air. "Ooohhhh! I'll go with him!" He grins an laughs. "Since we've been together already I say it'll be great!"

Mara nods and turns on her heel. "Alright! MOVE OUT!"

"YEAH!" Henry cheers, really hoping someone else would join in, but no one did so he pouts and hangs his head down. "If Pyro and Diablo were here they'd have cheered with me..."

Ludwig pats his back and sighs, shaking his head. "Come on Henry, let's go." He starts to walk and Henry follows behind him, head still hanging low.

Daniel puts his hands in his pockets. "I'll take a look around by myself. I think it'd be best."

Mara nods. "That sounds good."

"Alright then I shall also look on my own!" Francis beams, grinning big.

"No. You're coming with me. I don't think it's wise to let you go alone for the time being. Considering you haven't been able to do any...experiments lately you're most likely itching to get your hands on someone."

He pouts and crosses his arms. "I can control myself! But...you're not wrong..." He sighs heavily and hangs his head low. "Okay okay fine! I'll come with you..."

Daniel points and laughs. "HA! You got to be babysat!"

Mara motions for him to follow. "Come on Francis." Francis follows, his head hanging low.

Daniel snorts and stretches as he goes off to do his own thing.

So they go off into the town in search of Pyro! Little did they know, they were closer to him than they think. In the town, inside a building a scene was playing out.

"Any last words?" A man with eyes as blue as the sky was glaring at a man who was on his knees, smirking big at him.

"You're a mad man Jones...you're not gonna get away with this!" He laughs. "So kill me. But this isn't going to be the end. Someone is going to stop you. You can bet on that."

He chuckles and grins. "Don't worry...I was hoping this was just the beginning~" He pulls the trigger and with a bang the man falls over.

The man runs his hand through his golden blonde locks, a cowlick sticking up on his head. "How was that?" He grins and looks at the director who sniffles.

"Magnificent Alfred! You're the best Madman Jones I've ever had! Oh perfect as always! That's a wrap! Take five!" He laughs an claps his hands.

Alfred chuckles. "I can't wait for tonight! I have a feeling tonight is gonna be real special!" He grins and laughs. Alfred F. Jones. Also known as Pyro. He's been traveling with an acting troupe and playing the bad guy known as MAdman Jones for awhile now. Little does he know, his past is about to catch up with him very soon.

 **Hello everyone! YES PYRO IS AMERICA! SURPRISE SURPRISE! Bet you didn't see that one coming, right? Well I hope you guys all enjoyed!**

 **Alfred: America**


	11. Chapter 11: The Show Must Go On!

Daniel lifts his nose up in the air and takes a sniff. He hums softly. He thought he smelled something familiar and glances around. He growls softly and walks forward and sees a corner. He slowly stops growling and crept around the corner and takes a peak.

"A flier for some play?" Standing in front of a wall that had a flier pasted on it was Allen. He snorts and puts his hands behind his head. "Aren't we suppose to be looking for...you know who?" He raises a brow and glances over at Ivan.

The taller man shakes his head. "You are not seeing the big picture...you should be taking the look at the picture. Does the villain look familiar?"

Allen blinks and looks at the picture closely and then his eyes go wide and he grins. "Well well well, look who ended up being an actor. That's Pyro isn't it?"

Ivan smiles and nods. "You are being correct Allen." He reaches inside his jacket and pulls out his wanted poster and holds them side by side. "The curl, glasses, both have nice big grins. Now we first have to make sure that's our man before anything else. We do not want to be wrong and hurt an innocent. So we will be attending the play! If he is being our guy, we simply wait until after the play to take him into custody. If not, then we will just be the leaving. Either way we get to enjoy play."

Allen sighs and sets his hands behind his head. "I guess we can't just go attacking him during the play...don't want to cause a panic or whatever...fine sounds good to me."

"Good! We should go alert the others about the plan!" He nods and puts the wanted poster away into his jacket and heads down the street. "I am hoping we will not be interrupted once more..." He frowns.

Allen snorts. "If they show up I'm sure we can all take 'em!" He grins and stops, sniffing the air a bit and looking over his shoulder to a corner of a building. "Huh...could have sworn I smelled somethin..."

"Come on Allen!" Ivan calls to him.

Allen grunts a bit and catches up with him. Maybe he was imagining things, but he could have sworn he smelled something...familiar? It was probably a stray dog or something so he kept it to himself.

Daniel presses his back against the building. He curses a bit under his breath. "Damn it...they're a step ahead of us already..." He sighs heavily. He peeks around the corner and sees they are gone. He quickly runs up and tears off the poster from the wall and goes to find the others.

Once they were all together once more he shows them the poster. "Look at this! It's a poster for a play happening tonight!" He looks at them all.

"...did...did you wanna see the play or something...?" Henry scratches the top of his head.

Daniel drags his hand down his face. "No you idiot! Look CLOSER!" He points to the villain on the poster.

Mara raises a brow. "Wait...it can't be..." She gets a closer look. "Is it?"

"Wait! Is that Alfred?!" France blinks a few times and laughs. "H-he's an actor now?! Wow! I never thought I'd see the day!"

"I mean...that one time he talked about acting? But I never thought he'd actually go THROUGH with it. He just never seemed like the acting type to me." Henry chuckles and rubs the back of his head.

"So...Pyro, or rather, Alfred, is an actor in a play? And it looks like he plays the villain. I've heard of this play...it's suppose to be really good. It's gotten rave reviews." Ludwig rubs his chin and hums softly.

"Correct...I have also heard of this play by name, but I never thought Alfred would be apart of it..." Mara rubs her chin. "But none the less, we have our lead and we are going to follow it."

Daniel nods. "Right, but...our pursers are here too...they plan on going to the play tonight. Then when it's over, they're gonna take him into custody. So we're either gonna get to him first and get him out of here, or we're gonna wait until tonight, which I don't suggest we do."

Mara nods. "First we have to find where this play is being held and talk to Alfred. Honestly, I highly doubt he would abandon the play when we confront him...but the very least we can do is let him know what's going on."

They all nod, agreeing with her.

"So...where is the play being held at?" Henry asks tilting his head a bit. Argon tilts his head as well as he rests on his shoulder.

Daniel points to the location on the poster and they set off to go get Alfred.

Meanwhile, at the theater hall, Alfred had just finished the last dress rehearsal for the day and stretches as he leaves out the back door. "Aaahhh, can't wait to get something to drink and eat!" He grins and sets his hands behind his head. He whistles happily as he walks down the street a skip in his step and a song in his heart.

"Man I can't wait for the show tonight, it's gonna kick ASS! I just know it! I love premiering in new places!" He laughs and sighs happily. Though suddenly a pair of hands wrap around his mouth from a near by alley and drags him down it and into an empty building. He flails around and yells, or at least tries. He was thrown down to the floor and scrambles up. It was dark, the door slams shut as soon as he was pulled in. "What's going on!? Who did this?! If you're a fan of mine! You're creepin me out dude!"

"Really? Did ya have to drag him in and throw him on the floor?" One voice asks.

"Well I had to get him in quickly! What else was I suppose to do?!" Another voice yells.

"You can always count on him to be violent and mean about even the simplest of tasks."

"What was that?!"

Alfred furrows his brows. They sound...familiar to him...but it couldn't be, right? It's ridiculous! Suddenly some candles are lit and the room brightens up.

Daniel was currently choking Henry and growling at him. Henry waves his arms around and tries to pry him off his neck. Francis was trying to pull the large man off and Mara just sighs and shakes her head.

Alfred blinks a few times and rubs his eyes, thinking this is some sort of dream or sick joke! "Wait...gu-guys?! No way! It...can't be! HUH?!"

Daniel finally let's go of Henry and grunts a bit. "Who else would it be? Your fan club?" He sighs and crosses his arms.

Henry rubs his neck and adjusts himself a bit, chuckling lightly. "Hey Alfred, long time no see." He grins and chuckles.

Francis winks. "Bonjour mon ami~"

Mara gives a nod. "Good day Alfred. It has been a long time. I hope you are doing well."

Ludwig waves. "Hallo. You don't know me, but still. It's an honor to meet you sir." He bows his head.

Alfred chuckles lightly. "Now...I take it you all didn't just come to see me act, right?" He jumps up. "GUYS IT'S SO GOOD TO SEE YA! IT'S BEEN TEN YEARS!" He sniffles and wipes a tear from his eye. "Oh man now I'm gettin all emotional."

Henry sniffles and chuckles. "I know...it's so great seeing you man!" He opens his arms and runs to him, pulling him into a tight hug, sniffling a bit.

"Henry bro! Awh you still give the best hugs!" He laughs and hugs him tight.

"Right, it's nice to see you too, but important matters must be discussed."

Alfred blinks a few times. "Huh?"

After explaining the whole situation, Alfred crosses his arms and made a very confused face and groans as he scratches the top of his head. He couldn't believe what he was hearing!

"So you mean to tell me. Our old assassination group is being targeted and hunted down? By every Divine Guard out there?!" He sighs heavily. "And some small special group is coming after me after seeing the flier for the play...oh man, this SOUNDS like a weird play or some weird story written by some wannabe novice writer..."

Ludwig nods. "So we have to figure out some sort of plan...if we don't then this could end in disaster."

"I hope it doesn't involve me not doing the play! Because we've been working on this for MONTHS! This is gonna be our best turn out yet! We just know it!" Alfred's eyes shine as he thinks about how big the crowd was gonna be tonight!

"Ah, the call to the stage is a call no one can ignore! once you've been bitten by the acting bug their is no going back!" Francis grins as he stands up and spreads his arms out, inhaling deeply. "I once had a passion for acting in my younger years~ I understand what you mean Alfred!" He smiles and grasps his hands into his.

Alfred sniffles and stares at Francis with big watery eyes. "Thanks bro...I knew someone would understand..." He smiles and pulls him into a hug, crying into his chest.

"Sssshhh...it's alright Alfred, let it out..." He smiles softly and rubs his back.

Mara, Daniel, and Ludwig sweatdrop as they watch the two idiots make a scene for no reason. Henry sniffles, blowing his nose into a tissue.

Mara sighs and rubs her temples. "Honestly, enough with the water works. I figured you wouldn't want to quit the play, so I have devised a plan that should work out."

Alfred blinks a few times and nods. "Sweet! That's why you're the leader!" He grins and claps his hands.

"Alright everyone! Gather in close and listen up." She motions for them to huddle and they all get together and she starts to whisper the plan to them.

~o~o~o~o~o~

"A play?" Monika raises a brow. "So Pyro is some sort of actor now? That's a bit...strange, but at least we know where he is..." She rubs her chin.

"Yay!" Feliciano throws his arms up in the air. "We get to see a play! I LOVE plays! This'll be great!" He smiles and bounces a bit, getting really excited about this.

Roderich sighs a bit. "So we're going to see this play, then take him out after? I suppose it's a good plan. I don't see why we can't take him out before."

"I can't help but agree with Roderich. Wouldn't it be much easier to take him out before?" Monika rubs her chin, closing her eyes in thought. "I am sure he wouldn't be suspecting it, so it would be quite easy."

Ivan chuckles lightly. "By now I am being sure that his friends have already alerted him. I am positive they're here. So he knows we are going to be looking for him. Why disrupt the play they have been working so hard on and rehearsing for months? It is not being fair to the innocents. So we will be letting him do the last performance before taking him out! But I will be needing the all of us to go. I am sure his companions will be there to protect him."

Allen snorts a bit an sets his hands behind his head. "Whatever, as long as we get the guy and since his little friends are here, just means we're in for a good fight!" He grins.

"So are plan is being there to watch the play. Just to make extra sure that he is being our guy. We shall all enjoy the play. Then once it is being over, we shall make our move! Take him out. And if his friends get in the way, we can be killing the many birds with one stone." He smiles. "Sound good to everyone?" He looks around.

"YES SIR!" They all said and salute.

"Good! Now we have a few hours before it will be starting, so for now, we can all talk strategy then relax." He nods.

"Hey, I'm just sayin, if Farkas is there, I call dibs! I wanna take him down myself!" He smirks an crosses his arms. "You guys can take on whoever, but I got the wolf-man."

"Well, if we're calling dibs on people, I for one call dibs on the other Dragon Tamer. He's strong, but I'm sure Artemis and I can take him." He grins and his dragon purrs softly and nods.

"Why are you calling dibs on who you will be fighting?" Monika raises a brow. "Though...I suppose it would be best to face off against one you'd be best able to beat...it does make for good strategy..."

Feliciano waves his arms around and grins. "Oh oh! If we're calling dibs, I really want to fight Pyro! I honestly don't think I can handle anyone else." He pokes his fingers together.

Ivan chuckles softly, sitting in a chair. "I think I shall be taking on the leader. We do seem to be the best to go up against one another." He smiles softly.

Roderich had his arms crossed and hums softly. "Honestly, I am not interested in any one of the current members...but I will help if I need to. Though considering their are six of us and only five of them, it's safe to say I won't be needed."

"I think we all know who YOU can't wait to stick that holy sword of yours in to." Allen laughs and leans back on the couch he was sitting on.

Monika nods. "Well, if that's the case, then I shall take on Francis...that should be interesting..." She mutters to herself and looks off to the side, humming a bit.

"Sweeet! Now that that's all figured out, where exactly are we going to do AFTER the play? I mean...we haven't really covered that...we have no clue what's gonna happen after it's over..."

Ivan chuckles. "Now do not worry, I am having a plan for that, so everyone gather close." He motions for them to get closer in a huddle and whispers to them his plan of attack.

Both sides have a secret plan on what to do after the play and their strategy. Soon enough, the time for the play rolls around and the theater house is packed inside. It was fairly large, able to seat more than a hundred people, so it was crowded. The Holy Defenders were sitting more in the middle.

Alfred was backstage, taking deep breathes and adjusting his eye-patch a bit. "Man...can't believe this'll be my last show..." He mutters and smiles softly. "Well...I have had some good times here...I'll miss my theater family, that's for sure..."

"Alright Alfred!" The director sniffles. "This is your last show! So...go out there...and do me proud! Like you always do! You'll be missed my boy." He hugs Alfred tight and sniffles. "We'll all miss you so much..."

He chuckles and nods. "Don't worry...I won't be gone forever! Promise...thanks for understanding. I knew you all would get it." He chuckles and hugs him back tight.

Daniel was in the ceiling and carefully removes one of the tiles and peers down. He sees the Holy Defenders. He growls softly and nods. He puts the tile back.

Henry was all the way in the back, wearing a coat and fedora hat. Argon pokes his head out from his coat and tilts his head. Henry gently pushes him back down. "Gotta stay hidden for now little guy." He whispers to him.

Mara was sitting on the roof of the building and inhales deeply. "I just hope everything goes according to plan..."

Ludwig was sitting towards the front, a bit nervous about the plan at the moment. He wasn't sure if it was going to work or not. He takes a deep breath and tries to calm himself.

"Don't worry mon ami~ I shall protect you if anything goes wrong~ Honhonhon~" Francis grins, sitting next to him in a hat and coat like Henry.

The lights dim and soon the play begins. Entering center stage was Alfred, dressed in his costume. He grins big and rubs his hands together.

"Today, I, the GREAT and powerful Edward Jones, shall become the most powerful man in the city!" He laughs evilly and rubs his hands together. "No one shall stop me~" He swishes around his cape before exiting the stage.

The play went on for an hour. It was good. It had romance, humor, drama, and suspense! A young man trying to stop his brother from taking over the small country and plunging it into war. It was pretty amazing and everyone in the audience loves it. When it was over, everyone stands up and starts to clap and cheer. The actors all stand side by side on the stage and bow as the curtain closes.

The Holy Defenders clap and cheer. It was a very nice play. But while everyone else begins to leave, they all sat back down in their seats. The Shadow Soldiers who were sitting in the audience sit back down as well. Once everyone else leaves the building, Mara takes action.

"Shadow cover!" She closes her eyes and soon a thick, black fog fills the city streets. The closer to the theater hall you were, the thicker the fog would get. It was meant to keep people away from it. But they would be able to find their way back home.

The Holy Defenders just sit there, silent. Henry and Francis both stand up and remove their disguises. Daniel drops down from the ceiling and lands in the aisle. He snorts and spits off to the side. Mara comes in through the door and holds her hands behind her back. The four walk down the row of seats just a row away from the six and look at them. The Holy Defenders stand up and look at them.

"You won't be getting our friend." Mara says.

"We will be seeing about that." Ivan chuckles.

When the curtains closed, Alfred runs back to his dressing room and pulls out the chest he took with him everywhere they performed. He smiles lightly and sighs at the memories. He opens it up and changes his clothes in a pair of black dress pants, a short sleeve white button up shirt, and black suspenders. He also takes out a pair of pair of finger-less black gloves. That has a symbol on the palm of them in the shape of a flame. He takes a deep breath and looks at himself in the mirror.

"It's been a long time, but I think I'm ready." He grins. "Pyro is back baby~"

 **Hello everyone! I hope you all enjoyed this chapter! Yep, they are about to fight. So I want everyone to prepare for a pretty awesome fight next chapter! I think it'll be pretty great. I worked pretty hard on it. So! Stay tuned! You'll even get to see why they call him Pyro~**


	12. Chapter 12: The After Show

Daniel grunts a bit and spits off to the side. "So...are we just gonna have a starin contest or are we gonna do somethin?" He glances over at Mara.

"It depends on who makes the first move." She says, holding her hands behind her back.

Allen groans and rocks back and forth in his spot, staring at Daniel, growling softly. "Noooow? Can I go nooooowwwww?" He grits his teeth a bit and whines, his hands twitching.

Ivan hums a bit and smirks a little as he looks at Mara. "Alright. Yes, you can go now."

Allen grins big. "Perfect." He growls softly, his eyes narrowing. He grows bigger and taller, fur sprouting out from his skin, his face elongating into a snout. His ears pointed and a tail grew out from his back side. He roars and and snorts softly. He had auburn fur over most of his body, white fur on the tip of his tail, on his stomach and his lower jaw, and black fur on his arms up to his elbows and his legs up to his knees.

Henry blinks a few times. "Whoooaaa...so he's a werefox? That's pretty cool..." He nods and crosses his arms. Argon squeaks and nods, resting on Henry's shoulder.

Daniel looks up at Allen who was taller than him by a couple of feet. "A fox huh...I knew the guy who owned that belt...you're not him." He bares his teeth and glares at him. "But if you wanna play this game, then we can play this game." Daniel growls and turns into his werewolf form an howls loudly.

Mara narrows her eyes.

Ivan narrows his as well.

"GO!" They both say at the exact same time.

Allen jumps on the back of the chair in front of him and growls before lunging forward and tackling Daniel and flipping him over the seats behind him. Daniel lets him tackle him and shoves him off, causing him to crash and break a few seats and yelps. Daniel howls loudly and snarls before lunging at him.

Francis laughs. "Honhonhon~ Looks like the two canines are having fun~ I suppose it's our turn, oui~?" He grins and winks at Monika. "But at least I get to see a pretty face~"

She glares at him and takes out her mace and lunges, swinging it, aiming for his head. "Shut up! You talk to much for your own good!"

Francis ducks under the swinging weapon. "Ooohhh~ quite the powerful swing madame~ But you will have to try much harder if you wish to hit moi~" He laughs and jumps up and over her hand, hands gripping the backrest of one of the seats behind her.

She spins around and was soon met with the bottom of his boots, sending her a whole row down, where she crashes and grits her teeth, her nose bleeding and her eyes watering a bit. "Tha-that...kick...was way to powerful...for someone like you..."

He chuckles and pushes himself up and lands back on the back part of the seat, standing on it. "Honhonhon~ The boots help~" He winks and smirks. "As a doctor, my hands are very important to me, so I prefer not to use them after all. So I use powerful kicks. The boots just help make sure it hurts~" He winks.

"We meet again Vlad~" Henry chuckles and takes out his war hammer.

"That's Vladimir to you, idiot." He smirks and takes out his flail.

Henry pouts. "Awh, you're so rude!" He swings the hammer at his head, but Vlas jumps up in the air, making him miss.

Vlad inhales deeply and spits out a stream of blue flames. Henry inhales and spits out a stream of orange flames. Both attacks collide and push against each other, but they were evenly matched. Argon flies off Henry's shoulder and lands on the stage.

Feliciano takes his opportunity and stands on the back of a seat and jumps towards the stage, figuring Alfred is somewhere in the back. Argon narrows his eyes and becomes surrounded in flames, growing to his bigger size. He was just big enough to fit on the stage, his tail hanging off on the side. Feliciano lands on the edge and was surprised. He jumps back, just dodging a stream of fire.

Henry laughs. "That's right Argon! Keep that stage guarded until it's time!" Henry looks back at his dragon.

"Keep your eyes on ME!" He swings his weapon aiming for Henry's head.

Henry ducks just in time and sticks his tongue out at him.

Roderich walks down the aisle and up to the stage, drawing his sword, standing next to Feliciano. "I suppose I can try to help get past this overgrown lizard."

Argon growls and roars. He didn't like being called a lizard and glares at him. He may not be able to move, but that doesn't mean he can't fight! He was a mighty dragon after all!

Mara and Ivan were still in a solid staring contest. They both draw their swords and glare at one another. The clash of metal against metal rings through the whole building.

"Like I said, you will not be getting him..." Mara glares at him through their crossing blades.

"I am having to take him. By order of the king. You all will regret this." He smirks, glaring back down at her.

Daniel grunts as he is thrown in the aisle, landing on his back. He gets up and shakes his head. He howls and grips a theater seat and rips it up from the ground. Once he sees Allen lunge at him, he swings it with all his might, sending the fox straight into the wall above the door entrance and exit. Allen grits his teeth, having made a dent in the wall. He pushes himself out, landing on his feet. He shakes his head and smirks.

"I heard you were strong~ But I never thought you were THIS strong~ You don't disappoint." He laughs and extends his retractable claws and licks his lips. "Like an actual fox, I have retractable claws~" He runs at him and starts slashing at him.

Daniel snorts. "I've been at this before you were even born kid." He dodges each swipe of his claws and clenches his fist and uppercuts him under the jaw, sending him flying up into the ceiling and his head goes straight through it. Daniel cracks his neck and his tail wags. "I'm on a whole other level. You can't beat me."

Allen sticks his claws into the ceiling and pushes himself out. He lands on all fours and smirks. He lunges and headbutts him in the gut, sending him flying back and hitting the wall next to the stage. He grits his teeth and shakes his head. "What was that old man?" He laughs and lunges at him.

Monika spins her mace around, generating electricity. "Thunder STRIKE!" She swings her weapon, sending a bolt of electricity towards Francis.

He narrows his eyes and jumps up in the air. "Ooohhh, playing with electricity is bad for you. I should know." He crosses his arms in an X formation while in the air, scalpels between his fingers. "I'm a DOCTOR!" He throws them at her.

She back-flips out of the way, landing on the back of a seat. "You may be a doctor, but you're an insane one that's for sure." She growls and narrows her eyes.

The scalpels dig into the chairs and floor. He lands on the back of a seat and tugs his hands back, bringing back the scalpels between his fingers. They were tied to very thin, hardly noticeable retractable strings. "Now I wouldn't say I'm insane. I just enjoy cutting open people is all." He pouts.

"And you don't think that makes you off your rocker?" She sighs heavily and shakes her head. "If I had the option, I would send you back to that asylum where you'd rot!" She lunges at him and swings her mace, bolts of electricity surrounding it.

Argon growls and blows out smoke from his nostrils. He inhales and blows out a stream of fire towards the two. Roderich holds up his sword, standing in front of Feliciano and blocking the fire.

"Thanks Roderich!" Feliciano smiles. When the flames stop, Feliciano jumps up in the air. He lifts up his shirt a bit, revealing various knives attached to his belt. He takes one out and throws it into Argon's eye.

Argron screeches and shakes his head around. He stands up and hisses, blood leaking out of his eye. He reaches up to try and take the knife out. Feliciano lands on the ground and pulls on a thin strong that was attached to the knife, making him hiss more and whine, slamming his head into the side of the wall.

Henry's eyes go wide as he turns around and looks at his friend. "ARGON! HANG IN THERE BUDDY!"

"Hey, keep your eyes on your me!" He swings his flail and whips it toward Henry, the chain extending and wrapping around Henry's neck twice. "Up we go~!" He laughs and swings his weapon up and Henry swings up in the air and slams down into the ground head first..

Henry groans a little bit, his vision seeing double. "Okay...! Don't worry Argon!" He pulls on the chain around his neck, trying to get lose. He blinks when he was raised up into the air once more and slams back into the ground. "In a minute...!"

Vlad laughs. "This is way to easy!" He swings the other man around, causing him to crash through seats. He swings him up in the air and begins to spin around, spinning Henry around in the air, making him dizzy and green in the face.. He releases his neck from his chain grasp, sending him flying straight into Francis who jumps into the air to avoid being electrocuted.

They were both sent crashing through the wall. Francis grits his teeth an chuckles a little bit. "Mon ami...please be more careful...that did hurt a bit..." He chuckles and then coughs up some blood.

Henry groans a bit. "Gee, Francis, I'll make sure to control myself when flying through the air!" He pouts and pushes himself out and falls to the ground and shakes his bleeding head. "Alright...I'm ready to go...!" He rubs his eyes, trying to focus and hold down the vomit that wants to come up.

Francis drops down next to him and chuckles lightly. "How about we help each other out, mon ami?" He glances over at Henry.

Henry blinks and nods. "Yeah, I think that sounds good."

Monika and Vladimir seem to have the same idea of working together as they stand next to each other ready to attack.

"HAHA! LISTEN TO MY TOTAL HERO VOICE GUYS!" Standing on the back of Argon was Alfred, grinning big and laughing. "Alright dudes! I think it's time we all calm down!"

Mara and Ivan cross blades once more and push one another back. Mara slides back towards the stage and glances back at Alfred who grins back at her.

Feliciano takes this as his chance and he reaches down to his belt to pull out a knife to throw at him. He was going to try to aim between his eyes for a quick and clean kill.

Alfred sees Feliciano trying to reach for something and grins. "Not so fast there dude." He snaps his fingers, setting off an explosion right in front of the knife thrower, making him yell in surprise and fly back slamming into Allen who Daniel shoves back just in time.

The fox yelps as he was hit and the two crash through a few seats and hit the wall, creating a hole in it. Allen whimpers, taking the brunt of it all. Feliciano whines a little bit and shakes his head, looking back at Allen and frowning.

"Allen! I'm sorry! Are you alright?!" He looks at him concerned.

Allen groans and rubs his head, shaking it a bit. He nods. "Yeah...I'm good...took me by surprise, but I'm good, don't worry." He snorts a bit and winces slightly.

Monika and Vladimir glance at one another. They both spin their weapons around, ready to strike. Henry glances over at Francis who grins at him and nods. Henry inhales deeply and releases a stream of fire from his mouth. The two dive out of the way of the flames. Monika grunts as she lands on the floor, right in front of Francis.

"Bonjour~!" He grins and takes out a needle. "Now this will hurt for a second~ But trust me, I'm a doctor~" He quickly injects her in the arm, making her grit her teeth and wince. He spins around another one and throws it like a dart, hitting Vladimir in the arm, making him cry out in surprise and flinch.

"You cheap BASTARD! What did you just inject us with?!" Monika growls and glares up at him, trying to push herself up, but having a hard time at the moment.

He winks and rubs his knuckles against his chest. "Just a mild numbing medicine~ You won't be able to move for awhile, so you're helpless at the moment, madame~" He chuckles lightly and bends down. He lifts up her chin with his finger. "But don't worry...it'll wear off." He winks.

Artemis crawls out from Vladimir's jacket and growls, glaring at Francis. Vladimir groans a little bit. "Hold up little guy. I don't want you getting hurt."

Henry grins and holds up his hand that Francis high fives. "Oh yeah! The old distract 'em and inject them tactic! Just like old times!" He laughs and gives a thumbs up.

Mara dodges a deadly slash from Ivan, causing him to cut a seat clean in half as if it were butter. She grips the handle with both hands and lunges forward, stabbing the blade into his side, making him wince and grit his teeth, red quickly seeping through the fabric. She jumps back and glances around.

"ALRIGHT NOW LUDWIG!" She quickly calls out while Ivan was distracted by his wound. Ludwig had made his way over to the lights that were on the stage and nods, pulling all the switches, turning off all the lights and everything was pitch black.

"Someone get the lights! Quick! Before they get away!" Ivan calls, hoping it wasn't to late. The lights were turned back on a few seconds later.

Roderich had flipped the switches back on and to their dismay, the Shadow Soldiers were gone. They managed to escape within the darkness. Ivan grits his teeth and clenches his fist.

"They managed to slip our grasp once again...is everyone being okay?" He glances around, seeing just how bad his team has been injured.

"Well! Besides being unable to feel much and not being able to move, Monika and I are good!" Vladimir calls over and chuckles lightly.

Feliciano nods. "Si! I'm alright!" He grins and waves his arms.

Allen rubs his slightly bleeding head, turning back to normal, he nods. "Yeah...I'm okay I guess...but I've been worse, so yeah! I'm good!" He grins.

Roderich sighs and sheathes his sword. "Ja, I'm alright."

He sighs in relief and nods. "Well, that's good. Alright! We may have lost this battle, but this war is FAR from being the over! Alright everyone!"

"YES SIR!" They all say at the same time.

On Argon's back everyone had made it out and were high up in the sky, flying away. Henry pouts a little bit as he was sitting near his neck and rubbing the back of it.

"I'm sorry big guy...you got hurt in the eye...don't worry, I will help ya get it healed as soon as we find a nice place to land." He smiles softly. Argon glances back at him with his good eye and nods.

"How is everyone doing?" Mara glances around to asess the injuries in the group.

Daniel grunts softly, holding his slightly bloody head. "Fine...I guess...bruised just about everywhere, but you know, whatever..." He grumbles and hisses as his back stings from the big bruise on it.

Henry chuckles and gives a thumbs up. "Well a bit bruised and sore, but I'm good!" He grins . "Argon is doing okay. Besides his eye, he's just fine!"

Francis chuckles. "I am doing marvelous~ I shall help everyone once we land~" He grins and winks, blowing a kiss to Mara.

She stares at him and was now very much tempted to push him off the dragon right now, but she restrained herself.

Alfred laughs loudly. "I'm cool dude! Man it's just so great to be gettin the gang back together! But I have one question...didn't Daniel have those like...HUGE battle axes on his back?"

Daniel groans and crosses his arms. "I use to, but they were stolen, okay?! So don't ask about it!" He growls and glares at him.

"Okay okay, sheesh, calm down dude!" He waves his hands around. "You're still just as grumpy though I see..." He pouts and crosses his arms.

Ludwig sighs a bit and crosses his arms. "Alright...we just need one more member...and that's, Diablo, correct?" He looks over at Mara.

She nods. "Right...though, I have a pretty good idea of where he is." She closes her eyes and rubs her chin. "He's not a very hard man to understand...I am positive he's where exactly I think he is. But first, let's find some place to rest. So we can regroup and those injured can heal."

"Right!" They all said at the same time.

Argon nods and continues, flying off into the night and up into the clouds.

 **Hello everyone! I hope you all enjoyed this chapter! Some fighting there of course. Hope you all liked. But I have to tell you guys, the next few chapters are my favorite ones! Some interesting stuff happens and you get to meet some new people that I KNOW you guys will probably love~**


	13. Chapter 13

The Shadow Soldiers found a cave to rest in for the rest of the night. Henry was currently looking over Argon's injured eye and looks a bit sad.

"I'm sorry buddy...you're eye is all messed up, but don't worry! I'll have it all patched up for ya!" He grins and rubs his head making the dragon purr softly. He reaches into his pocket and pulls out a small sack and opens it. He puts his pinky finger in, scooping up some green healing ointment and rubs it over his inured eye. "Theeeere ya go buddy. You'll feel better soon." He smiles.

"Henry, what is that stuff...?" Ludwig asks, walking over to him and sitting down next to him.

"Oh! It's this special healing stuff I make for Argon just in case of serious injuries. So his eye should be good as new in a matter of minutes!"

He nods slowly. "Wow...that is amazing. Well I'm glad he won't be blind in that eye forever. I was worried when he got stabbed there and all..." He rubs the back of his head.

Henry grins and gives a thumbs up. "Awh~ I'm glad you care so much about him!" He chuckles and Argon squeaks a bit and swishes his tail back and forth, smiling up at Ludwig.

He chuckles a bit. "Ah...well of course!"

Daniel hisses and groans as Francis wraps a bandage around his arm. "Geeze Doc, can you be a little more gentle? I'm still alive ya know."

Francis pokes his nose. "Oh shush. You're being a big baby. I'm not even tying it that tight." He rolls his eyes and kisses his cheek. "There. That feel better?" He grins and winks.

He blinks and groans, lightly pushing him away. "Oh shut it will ya...go on and go check on everyone else why don't ya." He groans a little bit and rubs the back of his head. His cheeks become a soft pink as he blushes lightly.

Alfred sighs happily and grins. "Man, it's so good to be back in action! Being an actor is cool and all, but I seriously missed all you guys! I mean, ten years? It's been waaaay to long!" He laughs loudly. "What's everyone been up to?"

"Well...I was a bar owner. Owned a bar in a small town. Called it the Dragon's Den! That's where I met Ludwig." He chuckles lightly. "It was really nice and I enjoyed my time there. It was pretty popular too. Not to mention the best drinks in town!"

Daniel grunts softly. "I was in Dunlin Prison. It sucked." He crosses his arms.

Francis grins and rubs his chin. "Well...I was living in a nice large town, relaxing, meeting plenty of women~ Honhonhon~ You know. Living a regular life of a bachelor. But then I was put in an insane asylum for six months before being rescued and the like. But otherwise it was nice and relaxing~" He smiles.

"As for me, I've been living a simple life in a nice quite town. Reading, cooking, cleaning, etc etc. Just...enjoying the 'normal' life as I'm sure we all wish we had all those years ago." Mara crosses her arms and looks up in thought.

Alfred chuckles lightly and looks up. "Yeah...a normal life...you know us being together makes me think back to the day when I ended up meeting you Mara." He grins big. "I was an ex-soldier at the time, living on the streets...the only thing to my name was a pair of special gloves my commanding officer gave me before he died..." He held up his hands, looking at the gloves.

Ludwig perks up. He almost forgot to ask Alfred how he joined! He listened very closely.

~o~o~o~o~o~

 _It was a a cloudy day in the city and it seems like it was about to rain. Sitting in an alley, warming his hands from a fire with some broken pieces of wood he found was Alfred. He sighs softly, looking up at the cloudy sky._

 _"I hope it doesn't rain..." He was wearing tattered, dirty, clothes and his face had patches of dirt on it. He was shivering a little bit and rubs his arms. "Damn it...talk about the heroes welcome...how did I even end up like this...?" He sighs softly and shakes his head. He flinches as a rain drop hits his nose. "Oh no..." It soon starts to rain and his fire goes out. He sighs and leans against a trash can. "Great...another night sleeping in the rain..." He closes his eyes. He was starting to get use to the life of a homeless war hero. He'd spend the day walking around and asking people for money or food. Then spend the night trying to find someplace to sleep. Usually it was some alley. Suddenly he couldn't feel the rain hitting him anymore. He slowly opens his eyes. Maybe it stopped raining? No...someone was holding something over his head. "What the...?"  
_

 _Holding an umbrella over his head was Mara. She stares at him. "Alfred F. Jones. A highly skilled soldier and only remaining member of your squadron during the Cydron Infiltration mission."_

 _Alfred blinks a few times and stares up at her and nods slowly. "Well uh...yeah, that's me. But who are you, lady? Why do you know so much about me exactly?" He tilts his head a bit._

 _She holds out her hand. "If you come with me, I'll treat you to a nice hot meal and somewhere warm to sleep. All will be explained then."_

 _He quickly takes her hand and grins. "Well I can't pass up a free hot meal and a nice warm bed now can I?" He laughs and stands up. "So, what's your name?"_

 _She looks up at him, holding the umbrella above them both. "You can call me Mara." She nods and leads him to a tavern where she lets Alfred order as much as he wants._

 _Alfred takes advantage of this, ordering about two of everything and hungrily digging in. Plates started to pile up and people starting to stare. Mara just sat there calmly, drinking a nice warm cup of cocoa. She let Alfred get his fill. She can tell he's been out on the streets for awhile and he needs a really good meal. Once he got his fill he burps. He sets the last of the plates down and rubs his round tummy._

 _"Oh man...that's the best meal I've had in months..." He smiles softly and sighs happily. "So...how do you know me exactly?" He takes a sip of his drink. He was all ears._

 _She sets down her mug. "Well...I have been tasked with forming an elite group of assassins by the king. I've been on the lookout for candidates I'd find worthy. I've come across your profile looking through a few documents and I learned a few things. Like for instance, those gloves you wear were once your commanding officer's. But he died a few weeks into your mission."_

 _Alfred chuckles and looks at the gloves and nods, smiling fondly. "Yeah...the old guy taught me how to use these before he died...he trusted me with these, so I had to take care of 'em and use 'em for what I thought was right." He clenched his fists. "But now I just use 'em to light fires in the alley." He sighs. "I really don't deserve these...I should probably give them back to the army...but yet, I can't seem to let them so." He chuckles a bit. "Pretty pathetic, right?"  
_

 _"Well...with your military background and special abilities with those gloves, I will ask you this. Are you willing to join the new team I am forming? You are a prime candidate and you wouldn't have to live on the streets anymore. You are free to decline if you wish."_

 _Alfred looks up in thought. "A team of assassins, huh...well, I can't lie and say I'm not interested...I mean I don't have much else goin for me to be honest..." He grins a bit. "And I do miss the thrill of battle not to mention protecting my home...you know what? Sure! I don't see why not." He stands up and salutes. "Alfred F. Jones reporting for duty ma'am! I would be honored to join this team and serving my kingdom in anyway I can!"  
_

 _She nods and stands up. "I am glad to hear that." She holds out her hand. "Welcome aboard Jones."_

 _He smiles and takes her hand into his in a nice firm handshake. "You can just call me Alfred."_

 _~o~o~o~o~o~_

He chuckles lightly. "Man to think that was over ten years ago..." He smiles fondly. "But now we're back together! We just need one more of our friends! So Mara, where exactly is old Diablo? You said you had an idea of where he was, right?"

She nods. "Correct. I have suspicions that he's probably back where I encountered him." She glances around at the prying eyes of the group. "It was deep in a forest. He lived in an old abandoned mansion up on the hill..."

Henry chuckles and rubs the back of his head. "Of course he did. That sounds about right for him."

"Dude did love those creepy desolate places that were probably haunted." Alfred taps his chin, chuckling lightly. "I'm sure you're right!"

"Oui, he is quite the creepy man if I so say so myself." Francis chuckles and shakes his head. "He always loved old things."

Daniel yawns and scratches his stomach. "Great, we know where to look. Now we just have to get there..." He lies down and closes his eyes. "I'm going to bed..."

Ludwig nods and looks out the mouth of the cave. "It is getting late...I think we should all get some rest and prepare for tomorrow."

"Right. It's going to be about a two or three day trip, even on Argon. So everyone rest up and be prepared to head out early. We have to find him before the others do!"

"Right!" They all said at the same time. Everyone got as comfy as they could in the cave and soon drifted off to sleep.

~o~o~o~o~

Ivan sighs softly, walking outside of the Inn they were all sleeping at. He sits himself on the ground, fingers knitting themselves together as he hums, thinking about what their next move should be.

"Captain?" Feliciano pokes his head out the door. "Are you alright...?" He walks outside and sits down next to him.

He smiles softly and nods. "Da, I'm fine. I'm just trying to be thinking of our next move...I don't know where to start looking for the final member of that cursed group...and we haven't managed to stop them one bit as of yet..."

Feliciano smiles and pats his shoulder. "Don't worry Ivan! You may be at a loss now, but just remember, you have teammates who are here to help you out! You can always come to us if you need help!"

He chuckles softly and smiles lightly. "Friends..."

"Si! We're not just a group, we're all friends! We may have been traveling together a short time, but we've all grown so close!" He smiles big. "I just know we will grow closer too! We're all in this together!"

He smiles softly and nods. "You are being right Feliciano. I appreciate this. I'm sure we can figure something out in the morning. For now let's go get some sleep, da?"

He grins and nods. "Si! You need your sleep! We all do! So come on!" He smiles and grabs his arm and tries to pull him along.

Ivan smiles softly and chuckles. "I am coming, I am coming." He follows behind him, back inside.

~The Next Morning~

Mara and company were currently riding on the back of Argon through the air. Daniel was currently still asleep and mumbling to himself as he turns over on the dragon. Henry was sitting near the front and hums, rubbing Argon's neck gently. Francis was lying on his back, enjoying the view. Alfred yawns and rubs his eyes, trying to stay awake. Mara was sitting cross legged and cross armed, looking down below at the scenery.

"Er, Mara? May I ask you something?" Ludwig looks over at Mara who looks back at him and nods. "Well, out of curiosity, what is this Diablo like?" He tilts his head a bit.

She hums and rubs her chin. "Well...he's a bit of a troublemaker...not to mention overly confident. But he's a good man deep down despite what he might say. He cares about his friends. He's very strong and powerful as well."

He nods. "Then once we get him, we shall have all of the Shadow Soldiers together and we can go from there." Ludwig had a determined look in his eyes as he clenches his fist.

"Yeah! We're gonna be the heroes!" Alfred jumps up and laughs. "Man I've always played the villain in the place, but now I can take my rightful place as the hero!"

"Mon ami, I do hope you realize everyone else will see you as a villain, but I'm glad you're happy." Francis chuckles lightly and smiles. "But I just hope we don't get captured before we even GET Diablo."

Daniel snorts a bit and rolls his eyes. "I doubt we're gonna let ourselves be captured by someone. We're not amateurs. What? Did you lose your touch over these past ten years, Francis?"

He raises a brow and smiles. "Of course not mon ami~ But you're the oldest out of everyone here, are you sure you're not going to break a hip~? Honhonhon~"

Daniel growls softly. "Shut up. I'm not THAT old! I'm not even 50 yet! I've only grown stronger so up yours! I may have been in prison for ten years, but I'm still strong!"

"Okay guys, no need to fight! We're all friends here!" Henry walks over, smiling softly. "We're all still strong and vibrant! So no need to worry! Though those guys who keep following us around and stuff ARE strong, so I see why Francis is worried. But as long as we have each other, I know we'll be fine!"

"Henry dude is right! We're a team! So we can take down anyone as long as we work together and stay strong! Just like in the old times! Their wasn't an enemy we couldn't defeat!"

Daniel rubs his head. "Yeah yeah. I get it. I know we're a team and we work together and junk." He lies back down and closes his eyes. "Tell me when we land for food." He yawns and stretches his arms a bit, going back to sleep, snoring softly.

Francis shrugs and sighs. "He's out like a light just that quick. He hasn't changed much if at all if you ask me." He shakes his head and chuckles.

"Well, have any of us changed?" Alfred scratches the top of his head and looks up in thought, humming softly. He chuckles lightly. "To be honest, I don't even mind if he hasn't. He's still a good guy deep down behind that rough and hairy exterior."

Ludwig hums softly, watching the three. "You know, you're all so close and friendly with one another. It's really quite nice to see." He smiles softly and nods.

"Of course! We've been through a lot together! Now we're back again and ready to take down evil!" Henry grins big and rubs his hands together.

"Now you're starting to sound like Alfred. We aren't superheroes. None of us can fly." Francis points out and chuckles.

"Well YOU guys can't fly! But with Argon here I can fly perfectly well!" He grins and puffs out his chest. "But anyways we may not be superheroes, but we're heroes!"

"Even if no one thinks we are, we know the truth!" Alfred pipes up and laughs, putting his arm over Henry's shoulder. "I'm glad someone agrees!"

Francis sighs and shakes his head. "Honestly, you two haven't matured even a little bit." He chuckles lightly and smiles. "But, I must admit it's actually quite nice~"

Mara looks at the group and let's out a soft sigh. "They're a lively and unique bunch. But they're all reliable and care for one another. I am glad to see everyone in high spirits."

Ludwig nods slowly. "Right...Though sometimes it's still hard to believe that they were skilled assassins, but I've seen their skills. But still..."

"Yes, upon first look, we don't seem like much. But I've always liked that for our advantage. Never judge a book by its cover. That's how the old saying goes."

He nods in understanding. "I understand. I am glad to have met you all. But now we must get the last member and figure out what to do next." He nods, looking determined.

"Of course." She stands up and walks over to the front of Argon and climbs up his neck to stand on his head. He didn't mind or really notice. She hums as she looks forward and points. "Coming up should be a small town. We shall land there and get something to eat." Argon glances up at and gives a soft nod in understanding.

"YEAH!" Henry and Alfred throw their hands up at the thought of food, laughing loudly and happily.

Argon heads toward the small town where they could get something to eat. Everyone starving and ready to chow down!

 **I AM SO SORRY THIS IS LATE! I GOT CAUGHT UP IN SCHOOL WORK AND DIDN'T HAVE TIME TO EDIT! BUT I FINISHED AND HERE! I WILL MAKE IT UP TO YOU ALL SOMEHOW I PROMISE!**


	14. Chapter 14: The Elimination Squad

They arrive in the town and found some place to eat. All seems to be going well and no signs of any Divine Guards anywhere. They all enjoy their meal and were pretty content.

Daniel sniffs the air and tilts his head a bit and grunts softly. "Something smells off..." He mumbles softly and drums his fingers over the table.

"What? You're being a little dramatic aren't ya Daniel?" Alfred chuckles lightly. "There is nothing wrong with this town what so ever."

"Yeah Daniel don't be so paranoid. We have literally not drawn any attention to ourselves here. We got nothing to worry about!" Henry nods and gives a thumbs up.

"That's what worries me you idiots! The fact that we haven't gotten any attention! I mean look at our group! We look like a bunch of weirdos!" He whisper yells. "We haven't got ONE look from anyone. Now isn't that cause for SOME concern?"

Ludwig rubs his chin and looks down. "Well...honestly, I have to admit...he does have a point...we aren't exactly a normal looking group."

"Maybe it would be best if we go now. We don't want to push our luck." Mara says.

"Fiiiiine...but you're all being paranoid." Alfred rolls his eyes.

Francis takes a sip of his wine before downing the rest of it. "Right. Let's go."

But before they could even stand up, all the people in the restaurant stand up and surround them on all sides. Each one of them holds a gun up to the group, ready to shoot. They slowly put up their hands and glance around at them.

"What did I tell ya?" Daniel groans a little bit. "Now we're about to die."

Henry gulps a bit and laughs nervously. "I uh...well uh...what exactly is going on here...? Did we do something wrong or?"

"Shut up! You're all under arrest under the direct order from a Divine Guard!" One man says.

Alfred sweat drops. "Oh boy...so a Divine Guard had a bunch of townsfolk keep us hostage in a restaurant? That's kinds sad isn't it?"

"Oui." Francis agrees.

"Yep." Henry nods.

"Uh huh." Daniel grunts.

"Ja." Ludwig sighs.

"Correct." Mara says.

"Shut up! We're just trying to protect our town!" Another man says, holding his gun close to Alfred's face.

"Yeah! We don't need villains like you roaming around the country!" Another yells, growling and glaring at Daniel.

"So...Mara, what exactly are we suppose to do?" Henry glances at her. Argon crawls on his shoulder and growls.

"Well...I suppose we can't hurt them. They are innocents and all...Daniel? Do you think you can make a distraction?"

He snorts and grins. "Of course."

"Alfred?" She glances over at the pyro.

"Dude, I've been waiting for you to give me that look! You get 'em distracted and I'll clear a path." He laughs loudly.

Daniel slowly stands up and cracks his knuckles. "Yeah, yeah. I get it."

"Hey! Sit back down!" One man yells, cocking his gun.

He snorts and grips the edge of the table. "Get ready Pyro." He flips the table.

This caught the men by surprise and were ready to shoot. Alfred smirks and snaps his fingers. Suddenly the table explodes, splintered wood, glass, and smoke fill the air. They villagers all stumble around and start yelling. The group made it outside but only made it a few feet out the door before being surrounded once more by more people with guns.

"Oh come on!" Henry groans. "I'm getting tired of people with guns pointing at us! And it's only the second time today!" He pouts a little bit. "So anyone else really wanna meet the guy who set this up?"

Alfred nods and gulps a bit. "Yeah, I sure do...but I hope we don't get shot first..." He looks at the guns wearily.

"Alright! I can take it from here, thanks everyone! You've done your country proud!" A chipper voice calls from the back of the group. When some of the people moved aside they saw a man walking up to them. He has short, wild blonde hair and blue eyes. His black eyebrows twitched a bit. He grins big and laughs. "Hello Shadow Soldiers! Prepare to meet your end!" The man had a large axe on his back and wore a long blue coat that reaches his knees, black pants, and boots. His white shirt visible under the top part of his jacket jacket.

"Whoooaaa! His hair looks so coooool!" Henry points at his hair with big eyes full of amazement.

"Mon ami...please don't tell me that's the first thing you notice..." Francis sighs a bit. "But we should be more concerned that a Divine Guard is here to try and kill us."

"He's only one guy. I'm sure we can take him down no problem. I mean he may be a Divine Guard and all, but we out number him." Daniel says, crossing his arms.

He laughs loudly and crosses his arms. "Now what makes you think I'm here alone? I knew I wouldn't be able to take you on alone! I'm apart of a strong team within the Divine Guards! We're called, The Elimination Squad! As the name suggest, we eliminate any threat to the kingdom and you guys fit that description!"

"Elimination Squad...?" Henry tilts his head a bit. "I think I've heard of them once...there are five in all...the leader is said to be a quiet, mysterious, yet strong type of guy...so, you're not the leader."

"Correct! My name is Matthias! I'm second in command!" He crosses his arms. "We each are in charge of taking one of you down!" He grins big. "We can strike at anytime too!"

Suddenly the crowd around them thins out and the people around them seem to be making their getaway. Daniel blinks a few times as he heard something. Well he felt like he heard something. He looks down the street and saw a cloud of dust slowly getting closer. He starts to squint, trying to make out what it was. "What the..." Before he knew what hit him, a large man rams into him, sending him flying and crashing into an empty house with a loud crash. The Shadow Soldiers plus Ludwig all look in surprise at the hole in the house.

"Daniel!" Alfred calls out. "Are you okay dude!?"

Matthias laughs loudly. "Wow Ber! That sure was awesome! You sent him flying! Good job! But I don't think you killed him." He comments, rubbing his chin.

The man standing there was a little shorter than Daniel. He had short light blonde hair with eyes that could be classified as a seafoam green. He adjusts the square frame glasses on his face. He was a very muscular man and it was obvious since he wasn't wearing a shirt. He wore a pair of navy blue pants and a pair of black boots. He also has a belt with a silver buckle and a picture of an Elk engraved in it. "Hm. I'm aware." His voice was deep. He runs into the building to go finish him off

"Whoa...talk about tall, dark, and intimidating." Henry chuckles lightly.

"Well yes. He's a very sweet guy though!" A new voice said, standing next to Henry. This man had short blonde hair and violet eyes. He was shorter than Henry was and smiles brightly at him. He was wearing a light blue poncho with a hood, a short sleeved white undershirt, and light blue pants. On his hands were black leather gloves and a rifle can be seen strapped to his back. "Hello! My name is Tino! Nice to meet you!" He waves.

Henry blinks a few times. "Er...wait, huh? Hi...?" He tilts his head a bit. Argon growls and glares at the other man and hisses. He climbs on Henry's head and spreads out his wings, trying to look intimidating.

He was practically beaming and seems really friendly for someone in 'The Elimination Squad' but looks can be deceiving. "I have an animal companion too! Her name is Hana. I'm sure she'd love to meet you!" He sets his index and middle finger in his mouth and whistles loudly. Suddenly a loud howl erupts from the distance.

"Uh oh...this isn't gonna be good." Henry whines and groans. Argon climbs down to his shoulder and hangs on tight. Henry slowly looks to his left to see a very large and vicious white wolf coming straight for him. "OKAY SEE YOU GUYS LATER!" Henry yells and makes a run for it. "BAD DOG BAD DOG!"

Tino chuckles and jumps up on his wolf when she was close enough. "COME ON HANA! LET'S GO GET THEM!"

"Dude...that was a HUGE dog...I hope Henry will be okay." Alfred scratches the top of his head.

"Er...he does have a dragon, so I'm sure he'll be fine..." Ludwig adds and crosses his arms.

"I think you should be more worried about yourself!" Matthias grins swinging his axe at Alfred, ready to chop off his head.

Alfred's eyes go wide as he leans back, barely avoiding the sharp blade. "Whoa dude! This isn't fair! But fine if you wanna play this game!" He snaps his fingers, causing an explosion between the two of them and sending Matthias back into the eating establishment. "Okay I'll take care of him I guess!" He runs back inside.

Francis blinks a few times. "Now...three of us left...though they just want us...I suggest you go hide somewhere safe Ludwig." Francis smiles back at him.

Ludwig blinks and shakes his head. "I can't do that! I want to try and help someone! I will feel like a burden otherwise!" He clenches his fists.

"It's for the best at the moment. You don't need to be getting hurt. We can handle them, I promise, now go hide for now." She looks back at the young man.

He sighs heavily and nods, looking around and going inside someone's house. Lucky for him the door was unlocked. He watches from the window, peeking out from the window.

Francis suddenly smirks and back flips up in the air and lands a few feet away from where he was standing. An arrow imbeds itsrlf in the ground a second after. "Honhon~ Well well well~ Looks like I have someone to play with, oui~?" He smirks. "I'll see you around Mara~" He laughs and jumps up to the roofs. "Bonjour~" He says as he lands on the roof his arrow friend was on.

On the roof holding a bow and arrow, looking at the man with wide eyes was a boy, about 18 in age. He had on a dark brown hood with a cape. It was hard to see his face but he had violet eyes and could see his hair was white. He had on a white button up shirt and dark brown pants. He sports black gloves as well and had a carrier on his back to hold his arrows. He growls and glares at the man. "Will you hold still already?! You're making this a lot harder than it needs to be!" He takes out another arrow and aims it at him.

Francis chuckles lightly and smirks. "Oh come now, do you honestly think a few simple arrows will be enough to take down moi~?"

"No, but these aren't simple arrows. They're special magic arrows, idiot." He fires it, the tip catching fire and soon engulfing it in a blazing inferno.

~o~o~o~o~o~

Mara crosses her arms. "So I take it I have to fight the leader. It makes sense. Now come on out." She glances behind her.

"You are very observant." A voice says behind her. Appearing out of seemingly no where a young man stands. His navy blue eyes staring into her grey ones. "My name is Lukas and I'm the leader of this squad." He wore a cloak around himself to cover everything below his neck.

"My name is Mara. I am the leader of the Shadow Soldiers..." She holds out her hand and her sword forms in it. She grips it and narrows her eyes a bit. "I suppose you are here to kill me, correct?"

He nods. "Yes. Plain and simple. None of you are going to make it out of here alive. I can promise you that." He throws off his cloak revealing his short sleeved shirt, black gloves and navy blue pants. Around his waist were two long knives he pulls out and twirls around. "Your journey ends here."

~o~o~o~o~o~

Daniel groans and shakes his head. He was lying on what use to be a chair and coughs out a little bit of blood. "Damn it...that was a low blow...I wasn't even ready..." He seems to have crashed into the dining area. He stands up and growls.

The man was standing in front of the hole. "The name's Berwald."

"Right...and mine's Daniel..." He dusts himself off. He raises a brow when he sees his belt and groans a bit. "I take it you're like me, huh? A Shifter? Great. Always fun fighting people like me. Though, you're a herbivore and I'm a carnivore. This isn't gonna end well for ya." He snorts and cracks his knuckles. "Good news for me though."

He stares at the wolf-man and motions for him to charge. Daniel snorts and happily does so, running at him and aiming a fist at his face. Berwald moves his head a bit letting the fist fly past him. He grips his arm and swings him to the ground and pins him down, twisting his arm behind his back.

Daniel grits his teeth and growls. "Damn it! Hey come on! Get off me already!" He looks around and grabs a piece of broken wood and throws it at him, making him grunt and let go. Daniel scrambles away and groans, rolling his shoulders. "Okay, so you're a lot better than I thought you'd be..." The blades on his gauntlets extend. He rushes at him, starting to swipe at him.

Berwald dodges each swipe of the claws with ease and cold calculating eyes. He grips both his wrists and pulls him toward him and slams his forehead against his face then kicks his chest, letting go. Daniel falls back and hit the ground. He groans and sits up, wiping the blood from his nose and glares at him. This was going to be a lot tougher than he thought.

~o~o~o~o~o~

Henry wipes the sweat from his forehead and stops near the end of the town and pants heavily, setting his hands on his knees. "Oh man...that...was close...I think...I finally...lost him!" He laughs and Argon climbs on the top of his head and growls. "Oh no...they caught up that quick...?"

The two arrived. Henry now got a good look at the large canine. She was a large white wolf, standing a little over ten feet tall. Tino was happily sitting on her back. "Meet Hana! She's my loyal partner." He grins and rubs her head. "She's super smart, strong, and one of my best friends. We're going to take you both out now!" He smiles.

Henry chuckles lightly. "Well you may THINK that, but I have a dragon. I doubt some overgrown dog and her trainer can take us down!" Argon hisses and jumps into the air, enveloped in fire. He grew into his large size and Henry jumps on his back. "So bring it on dog boy!"

~o~o~o~o~o~

Alfred ducks under the large axe blade that got stuck in the wall. "Whoa! That thing sure looks heavy! It's amazing you can carry it." He chuckles and runs over to the other side of the room. "You must be a super strong guy!"

"Well, actually this axe feels as light as a stick to me! It's enchanted so only I can wield it with such ease~" He grins. "Its blade also never dulls no matter how often I use it! This baby can cut through almost anything! So getting hit would mean the end for you, pal." He smirks and throws his axe at him, the weapon spinning in the air.

Alfred smirks and snaps his fingers, causing an explosion in front of the axe and sending it back at the other man at twice the speed. He watched as the eyes on Mathias' face go wide and jumps out of the way of his weapon. One of the blades stabs into the ground where he was just standing. Alfred laughs loudly and crosses his arms. "Dude, one of my friends use to use two battle axes and would sometimes throw them at me like that. You're gonna have to try way harder than that."

~o~o~o~o~o~

Francis was jumping left and right, dodging arrow after arrow. He was quite nimble on his feet. He chuckles and winks at his opponent. "You know, I never did get your name~ My name is Francis Bonnefoy~" He bows and grins.

The boy narrows his eyes and growls. "My name is Emil...though you're about to die soon, so knowing my name won't change anything!" He gets another arrow ready and closes one eye. "These arrows are all imbued with magic so they all do various things. And if they fail to hit anything, they'll disappear and reappear in my holder once again. But if I do hit my mark, they won't disappear until it's pulled out. So don't count on me running out."

Francis chuckles lightly and blows him a kiss. "Now don't worry~ It wouldn't be very much fun if you up and ran out mere minutes into this fight! But don't count me out just yet. I am a doctor after all~ Honhonhon~" He now had scalpels between his fingers and he jumps in the air, throwing them at him. He watches as Emil quickly rolls to the side, nearly falling off the roof. Francis lands on the roof and retracts his scalpels back between his fingers. "And you don't have to worry about me losing any of my utensils~"

~o~o~o~o~o~

"I honestly hope you don't think my team will be taken down do easily. We are trained assassins and all. Even if it has been ten years none of us has lost our step." Mara stares at the other man who was staring back.

"And I also hope you don't think my team will be defeated so easily as I've been training for years, honing our skills. So don't underestimate our abilities or you'll end up dead. We're not called The Elimination Squad for nothing."

Two teams going up against each other in a fight for their lives. This wasn't going to be easy for either side and they were all aware of that.

 **Oh yeah~ My favorite little arc! I had a TON of fun writing this! Shadow Soldiers vs The Elimination Squad! Which are the Nordics xD So hope you all enjoy all these fights I worked hard on.**

 **Matthias: Denmark  
Tino: Finland  
Berwald: Sweden  
Emil: Iceland  
Lukas: Norway**


	15. Chapter 15: Beast Against Beast

Daniel pants softly and growls, glaring at the other man who was calm, cool, and collected. Daniel has yet to lay a single fingers on him! Yet he's been landing hit after hit. He was getting tired of him! "That's it, you're in for it now!" Daniel points at him and growls. "No more Mr. Nice guy." He inhales and growls softly. Black fur starts to grow out through his skin, sharp claws replacing his fingernails. He turns into his werewolf. He snarls and howls loudly once the transformation was complete.

"If you want to play this game." He inhales and narrows his eyes. He grew a little bigger, antlers growing from the side of his head, thick dark brown fur covering his neck, chest, and upper back. A lighter coat of brown fur covers the rest of him. His face elongates a bit and his feet turn into hooves. He snorts, a puff of hot air coming out of his nostrils.

Daniel growls softly and glares at him. "An Elk versus a wolf. You're out of your league here, pal." He growls and and lunges at him, mouth open wide, revealing his razor sharp teeth. His was going to be to first tear his throat out and then use his sharp claws to rip him to shreds. He plan on ending this fight in one blow.

Berwald narrows his eyes and lowers his head, pointing his sharp antlers out at him and meeting him in the middle by lunging forward. He slides forward a bit after his antlers make impact. Daniel's eyes go wide, the points ends piercing him in both his sides, his chest, and both his shoulders. He coughs out some blood, his legs shaking. They didn't go in to deep, but they go in deep enough for some serious damage. Berwald swings his head sharpy to the right, dislodging Daniel and sending him to the ground.

"D-damn it...okay...so I didn't...think that...one through...I'll...give you...that." He takes a deep breath and sits up. He stands and growls. "Alright, no more Mr. Nice Guy." He snorts and gets down on all fours. He growls and narrows his eyes, walking around the Elk creature and trying to find a weak spot. His tail swishes from side to side, his head low towards the ground.

Berwald stands still, not even looking back at Daniel, just waiting for him to attack. His right ear twitches and his nostrils flare out a bit. The best way to deal with a predator is to think like one. He figures Daniel will try to attack him from behind and go for his leg. He just waits. It wouldn't be long now.

Daniel stops, eyes narrowing. He was going to attack from behind. If he goes for the leg, that would drastically immobilize him! The perfect plan. He growls and lunges, mouth open and claws out.

Berwald quickly spins around, roundhouse kicking Daniel in the the side of his head, sending him crashing through the wall and back outside. He snorts and gets down on all fours, scratching the floor with his hooves.

"Damn it..." Daniel groans and slowly stands up. He shakes his aching head and his eyes go wide. He sees Berwald on all fours and he suddenly charges at him, antlers pointing straight at him. "Fuck!" His eyes go wide as he is stabbed once more by those sharp antlers, making him yell. As if this wasn't bad enough, Berwald continues to run, ramming him through the walls of different buildings. Ten wooden walls later. Berwald stops and throws Daniel off his antlers, letting him crash into some wooden chairs. They stop inside some sort of gaming room in some bar. It has multiple pool tables and a bar. Daniel groans and rolls over on his stomach, some splinters sticking out of his back. He coughs out blood that stains the fur around his mouth. A puddle of blood forms around him as he takes deep shallow breathes.

Berwald snorts and reverts back into his human form. "All you predators fight the same. It's very predictable." He walks over to him, slowly. He wasn't in any rush. Daniel was done for and even if he did try anything Berwald knew he would be able to see it coming.

Daniel blinks as he stares at the wall. He could hear the man talking and growls softly. He was good. Obviously he's fought other predators. He wasn't sure what to do. He couldn't die here, not like this. Fight like a predator...predators fight alike...he could hear the heavy steps of the man getting closer. His ears twitch and he can hear him raising up his foot. Then he gets it! He knows what he has to do! Daniel rolls out of the way, the heavy foot leaving a nice sized dent in the ground.

"I fight like a predator, huh? Well...I can fix that for ya." He turns back into his human form. Slowly, he stands up on his feet and holds up his fists. "I can fight like an animal...and I can fight like a man." He growls and lunges at him slamming his fist into his cheek. "And I think fighting like a man gives me better odds."

Berwald stumbles over to a pool table and shakes his head a bit. He wasn't expecting that. But at least he had some fight in him. Though as slightly impressed as he was, he still needed to kill him. He stands up straight and holds up his fists. "You're still a lot more injured than me. You can't win."

Daniel snorts and smirks a bit. "That's what you think. I've been doing this for a long time, so don't go underestimatin' me, boy." He holds up his fists and he takes a step and swings his fist.

Berward ducks under it and aims a punch at his stomach. Daniel jumps back, then lunges forward, slamming his fist into his other cheek with a lot more power than the first one. This sends Berwald into the wall, creating a nice sized dent. A little blood drips down the corner of his mouth. He narrows his eyes and scratches his foot against the ground before charging. Daniel is prepared for this and stands his ground, holding his hands out. The elk-man charges forward straight into Daniel. Daniel grunts as he catches him by the shoulders. Berwald pushes Daniel back a good few feet before Daniel manages to stop him.

"I told you...I can fight like a predator...or like a man..." He pants softly and smirks lightly. "But...I can also...fight like both!" He growls, growing bigger, black fur covering his body and his sharp nails digging into his shoulders, causing blood to drip down. He yells and swings him around and let's go, watching him land on a pool table.

Berwald grits his teeth and sits up a bit. Now he didn't see that coming. To shift mud fight has taken him off guard. He had to admit, he was very strong. A lot stronger than he thought he'd be. But he wasn't going to give up just yet. He slowly starts to sit up, but then Daniel lands on him with his feet, making the pool table break under them both. Berwald coughs up a stream of blood and grits his teeth, feeling his ribs either crack or break. The wolf jumps back and snorts.

"You may have gotten the drop on me before, but I got ya know. I've been doing this for a long time. So give me all you've got elk boy." He growls and clenches his fists.

He slowly sits up and pushes himself up, blood dripping down his chin and hitting the floor. "You...are better than I thought...that's good...I don't have to hold back." He turns back into his elk hybrid form and holds up his fists. He runs forward, swinging one at him.

Daniel holds up his fists and runs forward, raising his fist. They both swing at one another, hitting the other in the opposite cheek. The two stumble back and pant softly. They charge once more, slamming their fists into one another in a fury of hard and devastating attacks. Blood splattered on the floor from each punch. Jaws, cheeks, chests, shoulders, stomachs, noses, nothing was safe. They both stand in the same spot, not moving despite each powerful hit. They weren't letting up either. Finally, after many punches, they both swing and hit each other in the throat, making them both stumble back.

Daniel growls and glares at him. "You're...a lot tougher...than I thought...you'd be...but this is...not gonna end pretty for you..." He snarls and uppercuts him in the jaw. Berwald grits his teeth and his feet leave the ground as he flies up in the air and lands back down on the ground, groaning a little bit. Daniel pants softly then chuckles lightly.

Berwald pants softly and slowly pushes himself up. He needs to win this. Failure is NOT an option! The Elimination Squad's reputation would go down the drain if he let himself be beat like this! He snorts and lowers his head, scratching the floor with his hooves. He charges at Daniel once more.

Daniel grits his teeth as the sharp ends of the antlers piece different areas of his body this time. He yells as he was rammed into the wall, but not breaking through it. He pants and blood drips out his mouth, hitting the floor. His eyes suddenly go wide as he yells louder. Berwald was pushing against him, forcing his antlers to go in deeper. Blood ran down the antlers and drips on the floor. He needs to think of something quick. He was going to be run him through! He could feel some of the points scraping against bone. He raises his shaky arms and the blades on his gauntlets extend. He slashes them downward.

Berwald stumbles back, eyes wide. He reaches up and feels what was left of his precious antlers. Just small broken nubs. "M...my antlers..." He mumbles to himself.

Daniel falls on all fours and coughs out blood. He wheezes and starts to pull out the small antler chunks from his body. He pants softly and groans. "Damn it...don't know how much more I can take...I'm full of holes..." He groans and coughs out some more blood. He shuts his eyes tight and takes a deep breath standing up.

Berwald stands up and glares at him. "My antlers may be gone, but you're not getting out of this alive." He snorts, a hot puff of steam coming out of his nostrils.

Daniel growls and glares at him. "That's what you think." He growls and gets down on all fours. He lunges at him, tackling him down to the floor. He snarls down at him. "Look here. I won't be dying anytime soon."

Berwald narrows his eyes and glares at him. "I was about to say the same thing." He shoves him off and rolls over, standing up. He pants heavily and he turns back into his human form, blood dripping down from his mouth.

Daniel stands up and turns back into his human form as well. He wobbles over a bit, blood dripping from his mouth and puncture holes. He was a bit more beat up than Berwald, but that wasn't going to stop him. He growls and charges forward, delivering an uppercut to the jaw.

Berwald stumbles back back and narrows his eyes. He takes a few steps forward and delivers a hard punch to his cheek. Daniel stumbles over and growls. The hairy man glares and aims a punch at his chest, but it stops and his blades extend, stabbing him through his chest. The blonde's eyes go wide as he looks down and coughs out a splatter of blood.

Daniel pants softly and glares at him. "I really hate having to fight someone like me...I can tell you're one of the originals who had to go through that hell...we went through a lot of bullshit...I really didn't wanna fight you...but I guess it just couldn't be helped..." He pushes the blades in deeper, making him cough out more blood. "I dunno if things were different with your group...but I don't care anymore. I didn't hit anything vital...think of it as a small present, since we both had to go through that hell." He sets his foot on his bruiseing stomach and shoves him off his now bloody blades.

Berwald's eyes roll to the back of his head as he falls back. "Damn...it..." Was the last thing he mutters before hitting the ground like a sack of bricks.

Daniel pants heavily and slowly starts to walk toward the exit, coughing out blood along the way. He nearly falls over a few times but manages to push open the door. When he gets outside he smiles a bit and falls over, landing face first onto the ground. "I...won...my fight...now for a nap...the rest of you...be careful...don't...die..." He mutters and slowly his eyes shut and he sighs in relief. Suddenly a loud explosion goes off and smoke fills the air above.

~o~o~o~o~

Henry was up in the air and smiles. "Alright Argon! Time to light 'em up!" He points down towards his enemies. Argon inhales deeply and let loose a stream of fire at the large wolf.

Hana jumps on the roof of a building, avoiding the hot flames of the dragon. "Alright Hana, this will be a tough fight, but I know we can win it!"

Henry grins big. "This shouldn't be to hard! We have the air all to ourselves, right Argon?" He chuckles. Argon nods in agreement and snorts out a puff of smoke from his nostrils.

Their sense of victory was short lived as a large, spinning, wheel of white came hurdling towards them. It strikes Argon in the chest, making his eyes go wide. The impact makes Henry fly off his back. The man came crashing down to the ground, groaning softly. Argon lands in the forest near by. The wheel of white lands on the ground and uncurls, revealing to be Hana.

Tino smiles, standing next to his canine companion and she lowers her head down so he can pet it. "Now that's a good girl! You're really strong, you know that?" He chuckles lightly.

Henry slowly sits up. "Okay...so you're stronger than I thought you'd be...but I'm not done yet!" He stands up and shakes his head. He reaches back and pulls out his war hammer and grins. "I'm still a Shadow Soldier! But I won't be easy to beat."

"Oh I know. That'll be what makes it fun! Now Hana, go deal with the dragon. Got it?" He looks at his dog who looks at him and whimpers slightly. He rubs her snout and smiles. "I'll be alright, don't worry. Now go on and be safe." She licks his face once before running off toward the forest, howling loudly.

"You know your wolf won't be able to beat my dragon. He's super tough and can fly." He smiles and sins around his weapon, grinning big. "Now prepare yourself!" He slams his hammer on the ground, causing a row of spikes to go toward Tino.

Tino jumps up in the air and lands on the roof of a house. "I wouldn't go and underestimate my wolf. She's quite strong. But I'd worry about myself if I were you." He grins and takes out a rifle that was strapped to his back. He fires one shot.

Henry's eyes go wide. "Crap! Gun!" He hesitates and prepares himself for the piercing pain of the bullet entering his body, but when it hits him it explodes, sending him crashing through a house. He groans a little bit, his legs sticking out from the hole. "Ooowwww...what was that...did it explode...?"

TIno smirks and laughs. "Yep! This is my special rifle. These bullets explode whenever they come into contact with something. So it's best to not get hit by to many~" He laughs and holds up his gun once more.

Henry gulps a bit. "Well crap...this isn't gonna be easy." He pushes himself out the hole and inhales deeply. He then releases a stream of fire at him. When he stops, the part of the roof he was standing on was burnt. "Did I get him...?"

"Up here!" Tino calls, upside down in the air. He aims and starts to fire. Henry gulps a bit and yells as he starts running. As he was running, explosions were set off behind him.

"Man, why didn't Alfred get this guy?! He can cause explosions too!" He whines a little bit. "I really hope Argon is having an easier time then I am!"

Argon growls as he glares at the wolf. He snorts out a puff of smoke from his nostrils and roars. The wolf growls and barks, charging forward. Argon spread his wings and takes off into the air. The wolf latches on to his tail, making his eyes go wide and trying to shake her off of it. When he swings his tail up, she lets go and when in the air, she curls up into a wheel shape and spins around, slamming straight into his back. He cries out loudly and eyes go wide, landing on the ground and narrowing his eyes.

He growls and looks back at her. He opens his mouth and lets loose a stream of fire at her. She jumps up, avoiding it and lands on his head, sending it crashing into the ground. He groans and a puff of smoke comes out his nostrils. This wolf was a lot tougher than he thought. He was hoping Henry was having an easier time than him.

 **SO YES THE NEST FEW CHAPTERS ARE ALL FIGHTS! HOPE GUYS ARE READY FOR SOME SERIOUS ACTION!**


	16. Chapter 16: Earth Against Explosion

Henry dives down a narrow alley, avoiding another explosion. He sighs in relief, needing to catch his breathe. "Man...this guy sure is relentless...I think Alfred would have been better off with him than me...I gotta think of something quick...this would be easier with Argon...I hope he's alright." He starts to climb up on the roof and looks around. "Now...wheeeere is he..."

"Peek-a-boo!" He says, standing a few feet behind him. "And goodbye!" He fires. Henry looks back and curses lightly and quickly spins around, bringing up his weapon. The bullet hit it, causing an explosion. Henry flies back, hitting the next roof over and bounces up once before falling back down. He slides to a stop, just inches from the edge. He groans and lifts up his bleeding head.

"Oooowww...that hurt...how the hell am I suppose to beat this guy...? I'm getting tired of his exploding bullets..." He slowly pushes himself up and shakes his head a bit. He grips his war hammer and spins it around. He runs toward the sniper, jumping back over to the same roof his opponent was on. He raises his hammer and slams it down on the roof. "Earth Shatter!"

Tino's eyes go wide at the roof cracks and shakes. He looses his balance and falls over. He holds his rifle close and yells as the roof caves in and he falls through. "Oooww..." He groans, under a pile of debris. His head bleeds a little bit and he hisses, sitting up. "Alright, so he's getting serious. I think it's time I stop playing around too."

Henry jumps back to another roof when it caves in and sighs in relief. "Oh man...I didn't think that'd work to be honest..." He chuckles lightly. "But it caught him off guard! He's not dead yet though." He inhales deeply and let loose a stream of fire from his mouth into the caved in building, setting it on fire. "There, that should keep him busy!"

Suddenly, jumping out of the flames and landing on the ground, clothes singed slightly, was Tino. He pants softly and rubs his head, chuckling a bit. "Whoa! That was way to close! I was nearly burned alive ya know!" He laughs, rubbing his head.

Henry groans and his shoulders slump. "Oh come on! What will it take for this guy to stay down!" He grips his hair. "I really hope Argon is doing alright..."

Said dragon inhales deeply and releases a stream of fire at the white wolf. Hana jumps up in the air and lands on his back. He growls and looks back at her before spreading his wings and flying up in the air. She digs her claws into his skin, making him cry out in pain and try to shake her off. Though he flew up in the air and did a few barrel rolls and loopy-loops, her nails only dig deeper, drawing blood. He dives down towards the ground. Suddenly she releases her nails from him then jumps up into the air. He blinks a few times and it was to late and he crashes into the ground headfirst. He whines, lying on his back. He shakes his head and opens his eyes. Then Hana comes spinning rapidly down at him like a spinning, white, comment. She comes crashing down on top of him, sending him deep into the ground. The ground shakes and cracks, causing trees to fall over, birds and animals to run or fly off, nearby rocks grumble into sand. Argon coughs out a geyser of blood and winces a little bit. Once the wolf jumps off of him, the dragon slowly rolls over and gets up. Blood was oozing out of his mouth, but he wasn't going to give up! He has to take down this wolf then go help Henry!

The wolf sits down and stares at the dragon who struggles to stand up straight. She really didn't have to do much. She could tell he has immense internal bleeding. She yawns and scratches herself behind the ear.

Argon growls and glares at her. How dare she mock him! He opens his mouth, ready to burn her alive. But instead of a stream of fire, a stream of blood came out instead. His eyes roll to the back of his head and he falls over. He begins to shrink into his small size and wasn't moving.

Hana walks over, picking the dragon by the tail with her mouth and starts to head back to her master.

Henry jumps back, avoiding another explosion and gritting his teeth. "Rock wall!" He swings down his hammer. A rock wall shoots out of the ground in front of him and he takes a small breather. He knows Tino's weapon couldn't break it down to easily. He needs to regroup! He needs to get Argon back quick! Before he could start moving, he heard a growling and saw Tino's wolf standing a few feet away from him. But his eyes didn't go wide from seeing the wolf. They go wide from seeing what the wolf was carrying by the tail.

"Argon..." He whispers and falls on his knees.

The wall then falls down back into the ground and Tino blinks, grinning big. "HANA! I knew you could do it! Good girl!" He runs over to her and she lowers her head. He grins and pets her on the top of the head, making her tail wag.

Henry was dumbstruck and wasn't sure what to say. He grits his teeth and glares at the duo. He grips his weapon tightly in his hand. "Hey...hey! Give...give him back!" He slowly stands up. "Give me my friend!" He yells at the two.

Tino blinks and holds out his hand and she drops the little winged lizard in it. He then tosses the damaged dragon back at him. "Here ya go. He's probably dead or at the very least dying. So we don't have any use for it."

Henry catches his poor friend and cups him in his hands. "Hey...come on buddy..." He sniffles. "You're not dead, right?" He smiles softly. "You're a strong little guy ya know. I know you're alright." Argon slowly opens his eyes and looks up at Henry and smiles lightly, making a soft purring noise. Henry sighs in relief. "Alright...I knew you weren't dead." He slowly puts him in his pocket. "Now just stay there...I'll handle these two..." He grips his hammer.

Hana growls and Tino puts his gun back in the holster on his back then climbs on his wolf's back. "Alright. Well, I think you can handle this. I'll help if you need it."

"Alright...so I'm fighting the mutt...I can handle this!" He grins and swings his hammer up then slams it down on the ground, spikes heading toward the wolf. She growls and jumps up on the roof

Henry catches his poor friend and cups him in his hands. "Hey...come on buddy..." He sniffles. "You're not dead, right?" He smiles softly. "You're a strong little guy ya know. I know you're alright." Argon slowly opens his eyes and looks up at Henry and smiles lightly, making a soft purring noise. Henry sighs in relief. "Alright...I knew you weren't dead." He slowly puts him in his pocket. "Now just stay there...I'll handle these two..." He grips his hammer.

Hana growls and Tino puts his gun back in the holster on his back then climbs on his wolf's back. "Alright. Well, I think you can handle this. I'll help if you need it."

"Alright...so I'm fighting the mutt...I can handle this!" He grins and swings his hammer up then slams it down on the ground, spikes heading toward the wolf. She growls and jumps up on the roof. Henry inhales deeply then releases a stream of fire at her. Tino smiles and jumps off her back. She jumps in the air, avoiding the fire and curls up, spinning in the air and coming down toward Henry. He curses and jumps back out of the way. He sees the dog crash into the ground and she continues to spin, creating a deep hole. He gulps when she starts to spin toward him.

"Damn it!" He starts running, panting softly seeing the giant wheel of a wolf closing in on him. He jumps down an alley and barely avoids being run over. He sighs in relief and sets his hand on his chest. "Alright...I need to think of something...I can beat them both...but...how...?" He groans a little bit and hits his head. "Think think think!" Then he gets an idea.

Hana growls and sniffs the ground, trying to look for Henry. Tino sits on her back once more and looks around for him as well. "You can't hide for long!" Tino calls out.

Henry steps out into the opening and grins big. "Hello~ I'm not hiding anymore! Because I know EXACTLY how to deal with you both!" He grins and laughs. He swings up his war hammer, slamming the axe side on the ground, creating a crack in the ground to extend toward Hana. The ground shakes under her feet, making her growl and she manages to jump on a roof and avoid the ground opening up under her.

Tino blinks and laughs. "Okay. If you say so. But I'm doubting you actually have a plan. Go Hana!" He jumps off her back and she curls up into a wheel and spins toward Henry. He grins, everything going according to plan. The ground closes up and she was heading straight for him. "Time to test my theory." He takes a few steps to the side and watches as she crashes into the ground but she was still spinning and rolls forward, crashing into a building. Henry rubs his chin and nods. "Just as I thought. I know what to do now."

Hana whimpers and stumbles forward, shaking her head. She growls at the Dragon Tamer who sticks his tongue out at her and made rude faces. She charges forward, mouth open. But her movements start getting slower and slower the closer she gets. She blinks, not being able to move her legs at all. She was a few inches in front of Henry and she tries biting at him but he just takes a few steps back, now out of her reach. She then realizes...she was sinking?! Henry lifts up his warm hammer.

"The old quick sand trap never fails me. Sorry wolfy, but you're caught in my trap. You've been a very bad dog. You hurt my friend, so for that. You gotta pay." He smiles and hits the ground with his hammer, the quick sand hardens around her. She was buried up to her chest and couldn't break out. Henry smiles and jumps into the air. He spins and brings up his hammer over his head. "You need to be taught a lesson!" He comes down over the wolf's head and slams his hammer down on the top of her head, sending it crashing down into the ground, cracking the earth under it. Blood starts to form and trickle down the top of her head as she lies her head on the ground. She was down for the count.

Henry sighs in relief. "I can't believe it...I did it...I actually took down the hound! Now...just one more to go!" Henry freezes and gulps as he feels the barrel of a gun pressing harshly against the back of his head. "Uh oh..." He gulps.

Tino was absolutely livid as his face darkens and his eyes as cold as winter itself. "You hurt my wolf..." Was all that was said, his voice void of happiness or any emotion other than anger. Without a second thought, he pulls the trigger.

Henry ducks and rolls out of the way just in the nick of time. The explosion goes and blows him back a bit. He lifts his hammer up. "Mud Trap!" He slams his hammer down, the ground softening up into mud under Tino's feet and around him. He blinks and looks down at his feet, having trouble lifting them up. He grits his teeth. "Hey! Get me out of this stuff!" Henry grins. "I can't do that." He inhales deeply, the spikes on his collar glow orange. He breathes out a stream of fire at Tino.

His eyes go wide and he brings his arms up, trying to shield himself the best he can. He gets hit by the stream of fire and yells. Henry smiles and laughs. "Take that! You don't mess with the Shadow Soldiers!" He grins and puffs out his chest. His eyes snap open when he heard a gunshot and yells as the bullet explodes, sending him crashing through a building and into another. He lands on his back, crashing through a table in someone's home. He whines and slowly sits up. "I'm getting really tired of this." Tino walks through the hole in the wall. "Maybe this will teach you not to mess with the Elimination Squad." He points his gun at Henry's face.

Henry blinks and laughs nervously. He sweeps his legs, making him yell a bit and fall down. He gets on top of him and grips his gun, trying to get it out of his grip. "Let go! Come on! Give it to me!" Henry growls. Tino glares and grips his gun. He fires a shot, hitting a support beam and blows it up. They both freeze as they hear a loud creaking and slowly look up. "Uh oh..." They both say, knowing that beam helps keep the whole house up. They both look up at each other and tried to shove one another out of the way as they try to run to the exit. The house collapses and falls on top of them.

A cloud of dust fills the air when the house collapses to the ground. All was silent as the dust and debris settle. Soon a hand shoots up and pulls himself out of the pile and falls to the ground. It was Henry. His body has cuts, bruises, burn marks, and a few splinters. He holds one arm close to his chest and he looks down to see Argon curled up against his chest. He sighs in relief. "Thank goodness you're okay...had to pull you out of my pocket and make sure you wouldn't get hurt..." He blinks and sees the handle of his hammer sticking out from under the pile of rubble and pulls it out. He smiles and sighs in relief. "Here we go." He sighs in relief. "I think we did it buddy." Argon smiles and opens his eyes.

Suddenly, out of the pile of debris, Tino shoots up, practically roaring like an angry bear. He was also covered in bruises, cuts, burn marks, and small splinters. He glares over at Henry. His gun isn't in his hands, which Henry was happy about. He probably lost it under all the debris and rubble. Henry stares at the man and groans. "Oh no...nooooo! Why won't he stay down?!" Henry puts Argon back in his pocket and inhales deeply, releasing a strong stream of fire at him. Tino growls and runs straight into it, diving into the flames. Henry's eyes go wide and a fist suddenly comes out of the flames, hitting him in the face and sending him crashing into the pile of debris, making him yell a bit as he cuts himself on the sharp wood and glass. "Damn it...he hits hard..." He rubs his head and sits up. His eyes go wide as he looks up and sees Tino diving in for another punch. He rolls out of the way, avoiding the hard punch that goes through the rubble and hits solid ground.

"What has gotten you so mad?! I mean I know you're suppose to kill me and all, but still!" Henry pants softly.

"You hurt my wolf! Plus you're all hurting my friends! I have a bad feeling something just bad happened to Berwald...so when I'm done with you, I'm going to help him out then we'll help out the others and soon you're all going to be dead! This is what you get for messing with the Elimination Squad!" This was like a totally different guy! To think he was this happy, smiling, seemingly nice guy not to long ago!

Henry is a bit relieved to get some form of news that Daniel might be winning or won or something. Henry grits his teeth. "I won't let you do that...because like you..." He slowly stands up. "I also have friends I've sworn to protect. So I can't let myself die here. I have friends that are counting on me to live. So, I won't be disappointing them!" He swings his hammer down on the ground, creating a rock to shoot up from the ground and slam into Tino's gut and send him up in the air. Henry jumps up.

Tino coughs up blood as he slowly opens his eyes and sees Henry's grinning face. "You lost." He says happily and swings his hammer, slamming it into the side of his head and sending him crashing into the earth like meteor. He lands right next to his wolf. He was lying in a small crater, his head bleeding. He passes out as soon as he hits the ground.

Henry lands on the ground and pants heavily. He takes out Argon who smiles up at him. He smiles back. "We did it...we did it...we won...! Now...I hope everyone...else is gonna...be alright..." He chuckles and coughs, blood splattering on the ground. Argon looks a bit concerned at him. Henry chuckles and rubs his head. "It's...up to the rest...of you..." He mutters and falls forward, hitting the ground. Argon manages to fly up as Henry falls over. He lands on his back and curls up, planning on protecting him while he rests. His head suddenly snaps up hearing a large explosion and seeing a cloud of smoke rise. He lowers his head and closes his eyes, but staying alert.

A few minutes later a shadow covers the two. Argon's eyes snap open and he stands up, growling at the figure. A hand reaches down and Argon hisses.

~o~o~o~o~o~

Alfred isn't having much trouble with his opponent. Mathias yells as he crashes into a table, breaking it.

Alfred laughs loudly. "Come on dude, at least make this a little interesting for me. I mean you were talking a big game not to long ago!" He grins and crosses his arms.

Mathias groans and slowly gets up, rubbing his head, chuckling a bit. "Well...I have to admit...you're a lot stronger than you look...but I guess I should stop going easy on you." He slowly stands up. Alfred tilts his head a bit. "Huh? Going easy? I find that mildly insulting dude! I AM an assassin after all." Matthias grins and nods. "Sorry about that." He snickers and seemingly disappears. Alfred blinks and looks around. "What the...?"

"Boo" Behind him, Mathias swings his axe. Alfred nearly gets his head cut off, but he was able to duck just in time. "Whoa! What the hell?! How did you?!" He snaps his fingers creating an explosion to separate them, blowing himself back as well, but he didn't have a choice. Matthias laughs loudly and smiles. "I'm super quick! But why I'm that quick~? It's a secret~" He winks.

Alfred grits his teeth and chuckles. "Well...this isn't going to be as easy as I thought...but I do know I'm gonna win this." He grins and stands up, holding up his fists. "Bring it on dude!"

Matthias crouches down a bit and grips his axe. "With pleasure~"

 **Hello everyone! Two fights down! Three to go! I hope you're all enjoying these fights! Feel free to tell me what you think and such! Things are for sure heating up!**


	17. Chapter 17: Explosion Against Speed

Alfred yells. He hits the wall after Matthias roundhouse kicks him in the gut. He hits the ground, wheezing and shaking a little. He coughs out some blood and hisses, closing his eyes tightly. "Da-damn it...he's fast...but how...?" He slowly looks up to see Matthias standing in front of him.

Matthias lifts up his foot, slamming it into Alfred's face and pins him to the wall. "Who's the one going to lose now?" Alfred snaps his fingers, an explosion going off right in front of Matthias and throwing him back.

Alfred slowly stands, holding his bloody nose. "Damn it...dude, I gotta ask...how exactly are you so fast?! You have some enchanted shoes or something?"

Matthias laughs as he sits up and rubs his head. "Wouldn't you like to know. I can't tell ya just yet." He disappears and reappears next to him and swings his axe. Alfred curses, then ducks and rolls. He snaps his fingers, but Matthias was already gone. He was right behind him and raises his weapon. He grits his teeth and snaps his fingers once more, but he was gone again. "Stay in one place!" He gets up and looks around. Then he looks up and curses, jumping back, his axe cutting through the floor nice and clean. How was he suppose to do this?! He was moving to quickly. "Wait...that's it!" He laughs and grins. He lunges forward, holding his hand out. Matthias blinks and closes his eyes, expecting some sort of attack.

"Huh...?" He looks down and sees some...symbol...? On his shirt? It looked like a red flame. "You...gave me a stamp...?" Alfred stands in front of him and nods.

"Yep!" He holds up his glove and points. "See?" He presses his hand against the others stomach leaving the symbol there. "My gloves can set this stamp on people."

Matthias is utterly confused. "Okay...? Thanks...?"Why exactly did he give him two stamps? Was this some sort of trick? He tries wiping them off, but they seem to be apart of his clothes...these stamps are quite strange.

Alfred laughs and turns around, walking away from him. "They don't call me Pyro for nothing." He snaps his fingers and the flame stamps glow orange before exploding and engulfing him in a ball of fire. "That's my secret technique~ " Matthias is singed from head to toe. Most of his clothes are burned and in tatters. He falls over with a thud, dropping his weapon.

"See? Looks like I win~" He winks and smiles. "Man that didn't take anytime at all. Guess I should go help out one of my friends. Though I did get a bit beat up...wonder if Francis done...maybe he can patch me up..." He touches his slightly bleeding head. He was about to walk away, but heard a laughing coming from the axe wielding man. Alfred stops in his tracks. This isn't good. He slowly turns around to look at him.

"Man...I gotta say...you're tough...I didn't...see that coming..." He slowly pushes himself up off the ground, coughing out a little blood. "But...I think it's time...I start getting serious..." He slowly stands up and throws his jacket off, along with his shirt.

Alfred's eyes go wide as he stares at his belt. "No way dude..." He shakes his head. "You can't be! This explains your speed though!"

On his belt is a buckle with a carving of a cheetah on it. He grins big. "That's right...I'm a shifter. Berwald isn't the only one in our group. I'm the other obviously. Though this actually belonged to my dad. Gave it to me before he died. Now I think it's about time to show you my true power." He growls and his body expands, growling bigger. Yellow fur with black spots forms over his body, with white fur on his belly and lower jaw. His legs morph into a more feline shape, his head a bit of a round shape with a short muzzle that contains sharp feline teeth in it, and a long yellow tail with black spots sprouts out and swishes back and forth. His fingernails sharpen into claws and he grins

Alfred gulps a bit. He honestly wasn't expecting this...his belt was hidden this whole time. It does explain his speed though. Whatever. He is going to win this still! "Alright...so you're a big cat...one of my friends turns into a big dog. I think I can handle this. Bring it on kitty!"

Matthias purrs softly. "With pleasure~" He growls and charges forward and swings his axe at him. Alfred ducks and sets his hand against his abdomen. Matthias growls and round house kicks him in the head, sending across the room. Alfred yells and coughs out blood when he hits the wall. He groans and sits up, his head bleeding a lot more than before. He smirks and snaps his fingers. The mark glows before exploding. Matthias groans and pants heavily but still stands. A burn mark present on his abdomen, some smoke coming off it.

"You...have some...pretty strong...explosions! But...nothing compared...to our explosives expert." Matthias gives a toothy grin.

Alfred narrows his eyes. "What? You have someone who uses explosions too?" He slowly stands up and takes a few deep breathes. It surprises he was still able to stand after that!

The cheetah nods and grins. "Oh yeah...Tino is the master of explosions. The one that chased down your friend with the dragon. I'm sure he's long dead by now."

Alfred glares at him. "Shut up! Henry is a very tough He's not going to be beaten! I'll just deal with you then lend him a hand! We're not losing to any of you!" He snaps his fingers, an explosion goes off behind Matthias and sends him forward. He snaps his fingers again, setting off an explosion in front of him and sending him back. Alfred kept snapping his fingers, tossing him between two different explosions. He finally stops, watching the body smoking slightly as he falls to the ground. "Now stay down!" Alfred pants and falls on his butt.

Matthias laughs and slowly starts to push himself up off the ground. "It's said...to think those measly things can be called...explosions...if that's all...you've got...then I don't even NEED my axe..." He chuckles and shakes his head, dropping his axe on the ground. He stretches out his claws and grins before lunging forward. Alfred barely has time to blink before His chest is slashed by those sharp claws. He grits his teeth and stumbles back, his back hitting the wall. He ducks under the next set of claws that shred the wood as if it is paper. He scrambles away from him then climbs over the bar, sitting behind it. He tries to catch his breath. He hisses and grips his chest a bit. He removes his hand to see it covered in blood.

"Damn it...he got me good...I'm going to have to stop the bleeding somehow...this is gonna hurt big time, but I don't have much of a choice." He chuckles.

"You know I can smell your blood, right? So no use in hiding. Face your death like a man." He walks over to the bar and chuckles. "Look, since you've been fighting like hell, I promise to make this quick." He grins and suddenly stops, sniffing the air. "What the...? What smells like...burning flesh...?"

Alfred suddenly pops up and splashes a bucket full of some sort of liquid at him. "Looked like you needed a drink~" He laughs and sets his hands on his hips.

Mattias hisses and stumbles back, growling at him. "What was that?!" He lifts up his arm and smells it. "Whiskey...?" He then looks at Alfred and notices the slash on his chest burned closed. "Did you...burn your wounds closed?"

Alfred nods. "You bet I did. I can actually set my hands on fire thanks to these gloves! Given I can only do it for a limited time, but still it comes in handy. Also did you know alcohol such as rum, vodka, and whiskey are highly flammable?"

Matthias' ears lower a bit and his tail droops. "Did you just say whiskey...?"

"For sure dude!" He laughs and snaps his fingers. Matthias yells as an explosion was set off right in front of him and was almost immediately set on fire. He runs around and rolls on the floor, hissing and whining as he went. Alfred just stands there and laughs, a proud grin on his face. "I'm smarter than I look!"

Matthias was finally able to put himself out and glares at the pyro. "You're so DEAD!" He lunges forward, gripping his neck and mouth with his hand. He lifts him up and throws him hard. He is sent crashing through the wall and into the street behind the tavern. He slides back and grits his teeth. Alfred slowly opens his eyes. He curses and sees an incoming fist heading his way. He quickly rolls out of the way and pants softly. "Stay still and I promise your death will be quick!"

Alfred smirks. "Sorry, can't let ya kill me!" He gets up and starts to run. He couldn't beat this guy with just a few explosions! He needed a lot to be taken down, but he did have a plan. He just needs some time. He blinks and sees exactly what he needs. He smirks and makes a sharp turn down a narrow alley. He stops on the other sides amd snaps his fingers.

Matthias stops when the buildings falls apart blocking his way. He growls. When the smoke clears, Alfred is gone. The pile of debris burns and so he has to go around. "I can just track him..."

Alfred pants and looks around. He gets an idea and starts putting blood on random houses to try and throw him off. He begins to run around, taking random turns, going in circles, anything to keep him off his trail for a little bit. He pants and looks at a house and smiles as he slips inside.

"You can't escape from me that easily!" He gets down on all fours and starts to sniff the ground. He catches the smell of his blood...but it seems to be spread out. It was hard to pinpoint where he was exactly. He growls and starts to follow his scent, ending up going in circles a few times, coming to dead ends, looking through empty houses. It took him about ten minutes to finally find where his scent seems to be the strongest. He slowly walks in and growls as he looks around.

Alfred suddenly drops down on his back and grips his fur. "YEEEE HAW!" Matthias yells and runs around, knocking over chairs and tables as he runs around, trying to buck him off his back like a bull. Alfred laughs loudly, having the time of his life at the moment. Matthias was starting to get upset and slams his back against the wall. He takes a step forward and Alfred falls to the ground, coughing out blood. He grits his teeth and and gives a light chuckle. "Whoa dude...next time...give me a warning, will ya...?"

"You...know...you actually seem like a fun guy." He grins and grips him by the head. "Maybe if you weren't my enemy we could have been friends. Funny how life works out thought, huh?" He lifts him up and stretches out his fingers and brings back his arm, ready to slash his neck and chest. Alfred quickly grips his wrist with both hands hands and pulls them back. He smirks and snaps his fingers. Two flame symbols on his wrist from where he was just gripping him and another flame symbol on the back of his neck from when he used him as a bull. He snaps his fingers and they all glow and explode. He yells and drops him, stumbling back.

"Dude! Come on! You keep falling for the same trick!" He snickers and grins. "You're a pretty dumb cat." He laughs and runs off down to the basement and closes the door behind him then locks it. He runs down the stairs and looks around. He smiles and nods.

Matthias snarls, his eyes fill with bloodlust. "That's it...I'm getting really tired of this guy! When I get my teeth into him, I'm not letting go!" He roars and stands at the door to the basement and jiggles the handle, smirking. "This won't keep me from ripping you apart." He kicks the door apart. He walks down the steps, the wooden panels creaking with each step. He jumps down and turns to see Alfred sitting there pretty casually in the middle of the room. "What? Have you given up?"

Alfred shakes his head. "Nah, I'm just waiting here for you is all. I'm ready to end this...and I know just how." He grins. "I've been playing the villain in my acting troupe for the longest time. So I'm really glad I can play the good guy this time around."

"The good guy? I dunno what kind of reality you're seeing, but you're the bad guy here pal. Now I think it's time to close the curtains on your act." He growls and gets his claws ready.

Alfred laughs. "Alright dude...bring it." He grins big, not an ounce of fear on his face.

Matthias doesn't waste anytime, lunging at him. He roars and grips Alfred's head in his large hand, slamming him down to the ground with all his might. Alfred grits his teeth, trying not to yell. Matthias pants heavily. "This is it...any last words?"

Alfred raises up his hand. "Just one..." He snaps his fingers. "Boom."

Suddenly, over a hundred symbols start to glow around the walls surrounding the basement. Even a few that are upstairs on the floorboards start to glow. Matthias's eyes grow wide as he looks around, taking a step back. "No...no! You! You're gonna get yourself blown up too!"

Alfred sits up and smiles. "Maybe...but hey, it'll be worth it if I take ya down with me." He grins big and laughs. "I'M THE HERO!" He throws his fist up. A large explosion was set off and soon a cloud of smoke rises and the explosion echos throughout the town and then some. Falling from the sky, both Matthias and Alfred land on the ground with a crash. Matthias was back to being human and was covered in burns, cuts, and bruises. He was quite literally smoking, his eyes rolled to the back of his head. Nearly all his clothes were gone, except a small portion of his pants.

Alfred wasn't any better off. His clothes are nearly all burned off. His body covered in cuts, slashes, and burns. The bottom half of his shirt is burned off, one pant let burned off as well. His suspenders are completely gone. He smiles and sits up slowly. "Well..." He coughs violently, blood splattering on the ground. "Guess...I'm just...use to explosions...huh?" He hisses as he gets up and starts walking.

After a few minutes of walking and turning a corner he squints. "Wait...is that...?" He slowly walks over and sees Henry passed out and Argon sleeping on his back. He slowly reaches his hand down. Argon snaps his eyes open and looks up at the figure and growls. He hisses when he sees the hand coming and stops, realizing it was Alfred. "Don't worry...I got ya both..." He holds out his hand and Argon climbs up to his head. He lifts up Henry, putting one arm over his shoulder and stumbling along.

Henry slowly opens his eyes and glances over at Alfred and coughs out some more blood before chuckling softly. "Glad...you're not...dead..." Alfred snorts and grins. "Same to you...now...we gotta...find the others..." Henry nods, slowly getting on his own feet but still leaning on Alfred for support. "Right..." The two grin at each other.

~o~o~o~o~

Francis jumps back, avoiding another arrow. "Now I do hope you have some other trick up your sleeve. You're not going to beat me with a few trick arrows, ami~" He chuckles lightly. He runs forward kicks him in the face.

This sent Emil falling back and he starts to slide off the roof, but he grabs the ledge. "Damn it..." He grits his teeth. He winces as Francis steps on his hand. He glares up at him. Francis smiles down at him. "Now you won't be able to shoot with a broken hand, oui~?" He steps down harder. He then kicks his hand off the ledge. "Oops~"

Emil yells as he falls and hits the ground, groaning softly. He rubs his head and looks up, eyes wide. He quickly rolls out of the way avoiding Francis' feet slamming down on the ground, creating deep foot prints. "Well, you're a lot quicker than you look." He chuckles.

"What's with your legs and feet?! They're overly strong you freak..." He quickly strings his arrow and aims it at him. "You have magical shoes or something?"

Francis chuckles. "Well, not exactly. It is true my shoes are heavy and have a steel toe. The soles do have a thick piece of metal a few inches inside of them as well. But I did train myself in using my legs and feet in a fight. I am a doctor after all, so if I were to use my hands and they get injured how am I suppose to help heal?" He flicks his wrists, scalpels appearing between his fingers. "Now how long has it been since your last check-up~?"

Emil glares at him and gets ready to release his arrow. He was going to have a seriously tough time with this man, but he wasn't going to let him live! Everyone is counting on him!

 **And now you know where that big explosion came from! It signals the end of Alfred's fight! So yes, the fights are happening around the same time and end aroud the same time! Fun, right? Three down, two more to go!**


	18. Chapter 18: Arrows Against Doctor

Francis narrowly dodges the incoming arrow. It grazes his cheek, leaving a small cut. "You're getting better at that you know." He jumps up in the air and throws his scalpels at him. Emil takes out an arrow and pulls it back. "Multi shot!" He releases it and the arrow glows and separates into three arrows, hitting the scalpels and knocking them out of the air. Francis pouts and retracts them back down his sleeve. Emil strings another arrow. "Multi arrow!" He releases it and it separates into five arrows, then those separate into five, then those five each separate into five. Francis grits his teeth. He wasn't going to be able to dodge all of them. He dodges a few and managed block some with his feet, but a lot of them zip past him and scrape against his skin, some even manage to hit him.

Emil smirks. "Alright. Now it's time for the real show." He pulls back another arrow. "Blood arrow!" He releases his red tipped arrow at the doctor.

Francis narrows his eyes and jumps over the arrow and smirks. "You're going to have to try better than thaAAH!" He takes a step forward, hissing at the stabbing pain in his back. He slowly looks back to see the arrow sticking out of him.

Emil smirks a little bit. "That's my Blood Arrow. It's an arrow that'll never miss as long as my opponent has some blood on them."

Francis has multiple arrows sticking out his body, including his right shoulder, left thigh, stomach, and now one in his upper back. He was afraid if he pulls them out now he will start to loose to much blood. So instead he breaks part of them off so a few inches of arrow is sticking out and at least he can pull them out later. He reaches into his jacket and pulls out a needle. "Alright. The doctor will see you now." He narrows his eyes. He throws his needle at him. Emil flinches as it lands in his upper arm. "The hell is this?!"

Francis chuckles and pulls an arrow from his shoulder, then the one from his thigh. "Ah, that is something I created a few years ago. It's just a light poison. Nothing that will kill you though." He smiles and pulls out the arrow that is in his back "It should be taking affect now~"

Emil yanks out the needle and tosses it aside. He raises his bow and takes out an arrow. But his vision is starting to get blurry. He is having a hard time keeping still, his hands tremble, a cold sweat starts to build on his face. He grits his teeth and falls over, his arrows falling out of his carrier.

Francis yanks out an arrow from his stomach and lifts up his shirt. He starts to stitch up his stomach wound first of all. "Well, that didn't take very long. Such a disappointment. Ah, I should go find everyone else." He turns on his heel and starts to walk away, pulling out arrows as he goes.

Emil's hand twitches a bit. He slowly reaches out and grabs one of his arrows. The tip glows a gold color and he slowly sits up. He stabs exactly where the needle entered him and he gasps, a wave of relief washing over him. He quickly puts his arrows back and takes one out. "Exploding Arrow..." He says softly and releases it. Francis slowly turns around, eyes going wide.

The arrow explodes inches away from him and throws Francis back, making him roll. He stops once he crashes into a building. "Sacre bleu..." He mutters to himself and slowly stands up, holding his bleeding head. "So, you still have a few tricks up your sleeve I see...Honhonhon~" He smirks a bit. "Well I do too~"

Emil walks forward, arrow ready to fire. He sees Francis standing there and fires his arrow. "Fire Arrow!" The arrow sparks and it catches fire. Francis takes a deep breath and jumps up in the air, landing on the roof of the building. The arrow hits the building and that is almost immediately set most of the building on fire. Francis curses and didn't have a choice, so he jumps off the roof and stumbles forward. He stares at the arrow coming straight at him, yelling as it hits him in his right shoulder. Emil smirks. "Thunder Arrow."

Francis is then electrocuted by the arrow and his body shakes and convulses. He fell to the ground badly barbecued. He groans and opens his eyes. He twitches a bit and his vision is a little blurry. He sees Emil stepping on his chest, aiming an arrow at his face. "Any last words?"

Francis coughs a bit and smirks ever so lightly. "Just two. Bad move." He grins and throws a scalpel up at him. Emil curses and stumbles back, just barely avoiding him. Francis jumps up and roundhouse kicks him in the head.

Emil hits the ground and slides on his stomach a few feet away, hissing and cupping his cheek. He slowly starts to push himself up off the ground, but yells as Francis lands on top of his back. "Oh mon amie...looks like you have a back ache...now as a doctor, I can help with that~" Emil glares back at him and slowly reaches over to his bow he dropped, but yells hen a scalpel pierces his hand all the way through to the ground. "Now now, don't think you're going anywhere anytime soon~"

Emil glares up at him and growls softly. "You're not doing anything to me you crazy bastard!"

Francis pouts. "So mean..." Francis gets off his back and reaches into his doctor coat and pulls out a syringe. "Now this will only hurt for a second."

Emil grips the scalpel with his free hand and pulls it out of his hand then yells. He rolls out of the way and picks up his bow. He hisses as he grips the bow in his injured hand. He strings three arrows and pull them back. "Multi Arrow Barrage!" He releases them and they each multiply into five arrows, then those five into another five. Each time they multiply they shrink a little bit.

Francis narrows his eyes. "Merde..." An onslaught of small arrows fly towards him. He tries avoiding them but a lost of them pierce his skin or graze against him.

Emile strings another arrow and releases it. "Exploding Arrow!"

Francis pants. A trail of blood trailing down the corner of his mouth. Dozens of arrows stick out all over his body. He needs some time to recover a little bit and pull out these small arrows! When he sees the new arrow coming towards him. He quickly turns to run. He gets a few steps in before the arrow explodes blowing him forward.

When the cloud of smoke clears, Emil curses as he sees Francis gone. "Damn it...he couldn't have gotten far..." He sees a trail of blood which belongs to Francis. He decides to follow it so he can finish him off.

Francis pants softly, leaning against the wall inside a post office. He slowly sits down and starts puling out the small arrows from his body hissing softly. "Merde...this sucks...my coat is all ruined now and it's hard getting blood out of this thing..." He slips it off and then takes off his shirt. Blood is leaking out of the holes created by the arrows. He sighs and begins to wrap himself up for the time being. He moves down to his legs and pulls out the arrows. Lucky for him, nothing vital was hit and his legs didn't take to much damage. He wraps the bandages over his pants for the time being and sighs, leaning back. He smirks a bit. "Aaahhhh, it's been awhile since I've had to fight like this...seems I'm a bit rusty. But I still have a few tricks up my sleeve~" He slips his shirt back on then buttons it up. He then puts his coat back on and grins. "This is far from over~"

Emil follows the droplets of blood to the building and walks inside. "Alright, this is it..." He stands in the door way, bow in hand. "Alright! Come on out! This is it! No where left to run! No where to hide! We finish this here and now!"

A soft chuckle comes close by and Francis casually walks out from where he is hiding, a surgical mask on and his hair tied up in a small ponytail. He slips on a pair of rubber gloves. "Aahhh, yes, you are right. The doctor will see you now. Honhonhon~"

Emil narrows his eyes and hisses as he pulls back his arrow, his wounded hand shaking ever so lightly. This is going to throw off his shot, but he didn't care. He needed to end this.

"Now I see you are injured, but don't worry~ I will help you with your problem. But first I'd advise you to put down the weapon. Your hand is injured after all." He throws a scalpel at him. It digs into his shoulder making him hiss and drop both his bow and the arrow he was ready to shoot. "Now. If you please lie down, that would also help." Francis runs up to him and roundhouse kicks him in the head, sending him crashing to the ground, groaning loudly. "Oh non! You're bleeding from you head! Tsk tsk, you're quite accident prone now aren't you?"

Emil groans and slowly opens his eyes. "Damn it..." He mumbles a bit and tries to push himself up. He was taking a serious beating. But Francis is just as beat up as him, but he doesn't seem like he has been injured at all or at least not seriously. "Wha-what the hell is the matter with you...? You've taken...a lot of damage too ya know, but you're not acting like it..." He hisses when his injures flare up and he flops back down.

Francis blinks a few times and chuckles. "Oh, that? Well I've cut myself open plenty of times in the past to try and see if I could survive being my own test subject." He purrs and sways his hips a bit, wrapping his arms around his body. "So I can ignore most injuries. I'm just quite use to pain~" He winks. "But since it looks like you can't move, I thought I could do a little experiment, oui? I do love getting to know people~" He takes out a needle. "This will only hurt for a second."

"Like hell you're sticking me with that!" He uses his good arm to reach into his carrier of arrows. He takes out an arrow and slams it into the ground. "FLASH ARROW!" Suddenly the arrow glows white and a blinding light fills the room, causing Francis to cover his eyes and flinch back. When the light vanishes, Francis looks around and Emil is gone. He pouts a little bit. "Merde..."

Emil is panting softly and sitting behind a counter. He hisses softly and looks down at his injured hand and shoulder. He wasn't sure how much longer he could keep this up. He needs to do something and quick. He then gets an idea, but he doesn't like it. He sighs a bit and pulls out a black arrow with a red tip. This was his last chance of beating him. He takes a deep breath and closes his eyes, gritting his teeth, then plunges it into himself.

Francis looks around, trying to find out where he went. He couldn't have gotten far. "Come out, come out wherever you are." He suddenly stops, hearing a soft groaning coming from behind a counter. He raises a brow. "Is that you...? Come out, I will make this as painless as possible, promise~"

A dark aura starts to form behind the counter. A dark figure rises up. It is huge, easily taller than Francis. It turns to look at Francis, bulging muscles on its long gorilla like arms, bulging pecs and abs, sharp teeth poking out its mouth, eyes glowing red, hair spiked up. An arrow sticking out of the monsters chest.

Francis raises a brow. "Aahhh...seems you had one ace left up your sleeve. I'm not sure what you did, but that arrow seems to be the source." Before Francis could do anything, Emil was right on top of him, a fist ready to smash him into the ground. He back flips out of the way just as the giant fist slams into the ground, creating a large hole. "Well I'm surprised at how fast you are..." He slides back on his feet and lunges forward delivering a roundhouse kick to his head. He gasps when the monster isn't affected and grabs his leg and flings him clear across the room and through the wall.

Francis lands outside, groaning a little bit. "Okay...so he's a lot tougher too..." He sits up and shakes his head. He gasps and quickly rolls out of the way of another punch and sighs in relief. "Now you may be big, but that doesn't mean you will win." He flicks his wrists and scalpels appear between his fingers. He throws them at the behemoth. Emil moves one of his monster arms up the scalpels dig into his arm, but it didn't phase him. Francis pulls back his instruments and narrows his eyes. "He's big, strong, fast, and has a temper...he's basically Daniel without the fur...well a lot dumber...like a wild beast..." He rubs his chin and grins, forming a thought. "Yes, that should work~"

Emil growls and snorts, scratching his foot against the ground and roars a beastly roar before charging at him. Francis simply steps to the side. He slides to a stop and turns to charge at him once more. Francis jumps up in the air and slams his feet down on on his head, sending him crashing into the ground. Francis jumps off his head. "To slow mon ami~" He lands a few feet behind him. He begins taking out a few different vials and pouring them into a syringe. Emil lunges at him once more and swings his arm at him. Francis ducks under it. "Honestly, your moves are much to predictable. Now this is a little something I sometimes like to use on our team wolf-man when he gets a little to...well, riled up." He plunges the needle into his chest and presses down on the plunger.

Emil's eyes go wide and he swings his arm, landing a powerful fist at Franaacis, sending him crashing into a building. The monster of a man stumbles from side to side. He is starting to feel dizzy and tired. He groans and falls back with a thud.

Suddenly a loud explosion goes off, a cloud of smoke fills up the air. Francis chuckles, lying down in the pile of broken wood his head bleeding much more and blood covering half of his face. "Aahhh...must be Alfred's doing...sounds like he's won..." He pushes himself up and limps his way over to Emil and grabs the arrow that was sticking out of his chest and yanks it out. "Now...I've never seen something like this..." He mumbles. The arrow then breaks apart and a dark energy floats off of it and disappears. Emil slowly turns back to normal and coughs out a little blood. "Aahhh...you'll be down for awhile..." He smiles and limps away, humming softly.

A few minutes of walking and his eyes go wide. On the ground, he sees a passed out Daniel and hurries over to him. He drops down on his knees and shakes him a bit. "Daniel! Daniel, wake up! Are...are you...? Come on...you're not..."

Daniel snores softly and mutters under his breath.

Francis sighs in relief and smiles. "Oh thank goodness...you're just asleep..." He smiles softly.

He groans and slowly opens his eyes and stares up at the doctor. "...oh...you're alive...that's good..." He mutters and yawns, sitting up. He winces and hisses. "Damn it...still in pain..."

Francis stands up and offers him his hand. "I'll happily help patch you up when we go and find the others, oui?"

Daniel nods and takes his hand, standing up.

"I'm sure Alfred is around here somewhere, hopefully with Henry." Francis smiles

The two try to keep the other up as they walk together. As the four slowly but surely start to converge, they had no idea what Mara is dealing with at the moment. Her opponent is tough.

~o~o~o~o~o~

Alfred and Henry lean against a building. They couldn't go much longer. They slide down until they are sitting and Henry leads his head against Alfred.

"I don't think I can go on much longer..." Henry groans and closes his eyes. Argon rests on Henry's shoulder, his eyes closed.a

Alfred laughs a bit and nods. "Yeah...I feel ya bro...I dunno if I can keep going either..." He groans. "Everything is sore...my clothes are ruined...everything hurts and I'm exhausted.

Henry chuckles a bit and nods. "Yeah...same here..."

"My my. You two look worse for wear."

"You idiots better not kick the bucket."

Alfred and Henry both look to see Francis and Daniel standing in front of them.

"Hey! You're both okay!" Henry grins big. "That's a huge relief." He sighs happily.

Alfred grins and nods. "I'm glad your both not dead. Though we all look like hell."

Francis helps sits Daniel down. He rubs his hands together and grins. "Now...how about I help you all a bit." He winks and smiles, still having his surgical mask and gloves on as well as his hair up in a small ponytail. "The doctor is ready to see you~" He closes his eyes and smiles behind the mask.

 **Hello everyone! I hope all is well and good. Hope you enjoyed seeing Francis in action! Yes what exactly happened to Emil will eventually be revealed and such, but that's not for awhile. So stay tuned! I know, I didn't leave a little sneak peak into Mara's fight, but that's alright. Next chapter is her battle!**


	19. Chapter 19: Shadows Against Snow

Lukas stands there, holding his two long knives out. "Your journey ends here...the elimination squad has yet to fail in eliminating our targets." Mara grips her sword, ready to attack when needed. "I can say the same for my team as well. So don't under estimate our abilities...it will be your fatal mistake."

The two narrow their eyes before lunging at one another, blades clashing. They push each other back and run at each other once more. Lukas swings his arms, trying to cut at Mara. She blocks each attempt with ease and swings her sword, aiming for his neck. Lukas jumps back just in the nick of time. He sheaves one of his long blades and takes out a throwing knife and throws it at her. She leans over to her right, watching the knife fly straight past her skin, nearly cutting her. She gasps a bit, Lukas right in her face, ready to stab her in the heart. A black aura surrounds her hand and she sets it on his chest. She releases a powerful blast, sending him zooming into a building and crashing through it.

Lukas groans and comes walking out. "That was good...you are a very powerful woman." He wipes the blood trailing down from the corner of his mouth. He takes out another throwing knife. "But you still don't have a chance." He throws it and it lands right in front of her. She raises a brow as she stares at it. Then a loud bang and a flash of light take over her senses. Her pupils constrict and a loud ringing takes over her hearing as it rings in her ears. Everything is white and she couldn't see. Lukas uses this to his advantage and lunges forward, stabbing her in the chest with his long knife, the blade sticking out of her back, but their is no blood on it.

His eyes go wide when he looks down and instead of blood, some black fog comes out of her. When he looks back up at her face, she fades into a dark fog. He furrows his brows and freezes. She is standing next to him, holding her sword to his neck. "So...some sort of clone I take it..."

She nods. "You are correct. This won't be as easy as you would like to think. You might want to give up now before you lose your life."

He glances at her. "I simply can't do that. We have a mission we have to complete, so I won't be giving up, neither will my team. Who knows, maybe your friends are all dead by now."

Mara presses her sword harder against his neck, causing a little blood to trickle down. "Bite your tongue. My team is far to stubborn and determined to die. So I wouldn't be underestimating them so much. This is far from over."

He nods slowly. "I see...now it is obvious you are an elemental. Able to control some sort of element...they're very rare and have a lot of power. Ivan is another elemental with his control of ice. I take it you control darkness?"

She nods. "You are correct in guessing I'm an elemental, but I control shadows. Not darkness. What are you getting at?" She raises a brow.

Lukas gives a small smirk. "It'll be much easier if I just show you." Suddenly, Lukas turns completely white and cold. He becomes soft and Mara removes her sword and takes a step back. "Snow..." She says and stiffens, feeling a cold blade against her neck. "You seem quite surprised. I also happen to be an elemental...Snow."

She nods and elbows him in the gut and shoves his arm away then gets some distance between them. She turns to him, holding her sword. "Then this should be an interesting fight..." Her sword dissipates and a dark energy envelops her hands.

The two narrow eyes and charge at one another. They each try landing a fist at one another, but each dodge it very easily. Mara holds out her hand, releasing a blast of dark energy at him. Lukas grits his teeth as he is hit and thrown back. He raises his hand, forming a white energy around it, then shoots it at her. Mara takes the hit, sliding back on her feet. She raises her hand and slams it on the ground. "Shadow Serpent." From her hand a shadow slithers on the ground toward Lukas. It comes off the ground becoming a large 3-D snake made of shadows that hisses and opens its mouth and gets ready to lunge at the man.

Lukas jumps to the side, avoiding the giant snake. He raises his hand and slams it down. "Snow Tiger!" Snow starts to form on the ground then a tiger made of snow jumps out and bites down on the Snake. The snake hisses and bites the tiger.

The creatures crash into the ground and disappear.

Ludwig watches from a building window in awe at the fight. Two powerful fighters going toe to toe. Ludwig is sure they are going to fight to the death. He is hoping it is Mara who is going to be victorious. He really wishes he can help, but he isn't sure how he can at the moment. He grits his teeth and clenches his fists.

"You're strong." Lukas admits.

"You are the same." Mara admits.

They both charge once more. Mara's hands glowing with dark energy. Lukas' hands glow with a white energy. They once more go into a close combat fist fight. Each one dodges the others punch with ease.

Mara catches Lukas off-guard by roundhouse kicking him in the head.

He grits his teeth and slides on the ground. He holds his head and takes a deep breath. He holds out his hand and a white dagger forms in his hand. He charges at her, holding it out in front of him.

Mara holds out her glowing hands and gets ready charge. Her eyes go wide for a second when he jumps and flips over her. "What-" She spins around to block his attack.

He lands behind her and swings his dagger up diagonally. He manages to get her across the chest.

She jumps back and holds her chest with her hand. it felt very cold to the touch. That was strange. It must be some ability that comes with his snow element. it is dangerous. She doesn't need to get hypothermia.

Lukas holds up his hands. "Blizzard!" Suddenly a whirl of wind and snow whips up around Mara.

Mara looks around and everything becomes less and less visible in the mass whipping around her like a snow storm. She shivers and exhales, seeing her breath. The crunching of the snow under her boots as she walks and the howling winds is the only thing she could hear. She can no longer see any buildings or Lukas.

"Looks like this is the end for you." Lukas' voice echos all around her. "You're either going to die from frostbite or I'll kill you. Suddenly a knife is thrown and it cuts her side.

Mara hisses, holding her side. She removes her hand and sees blood. This wasn't good. Just like before, her wound is cold to the touch.

Ludwig can't believe his eyes...a large dome of whirling snow and harsh winds is sitting there right where Mara and Lukas are. "They must be inside...but...how can I help get her out..."

Mara starts to walk forward, holding her side. She can feel her blood freezing on her hand. She needs to find someway out of here quick before she freezes to death. Then another knife flies at her, scraping her cheek. She keeps walking, her blood almost instantly freezing. No matter how far she walks she doesn't see any sort of exit. "Just how big is this place?" She asks, taking a deep breath She jumps to the side avoiding another knife. She lets out a shaky breath.

"This place is very disorienting isn't it? You could be making process, or you could just be walking in a circle. This is the end for you." Lukas' voice echos and he appears a few feet in front of her. He raises his hand and slams it on the ground. "Snow Tigers!" Multiple life size tigers made of snow form. A total of eight. They all growl and lunge at her.

She gets ready to defend herself the best she possibly can. Her wounds are freezing and her body begins to shake and shiver.

Suddenly things start heating up very quickly and the tigers melt. Lukas furrows his brows a bit. "The hell...? What are you doing?" He glares at her.

"I'm not doing anything...but I think I know who is..."She slowly stops shivering and her wounds begin to warm up and blood starts to melt and flow a bit. She relaxes.

The snow slowly continues melting and Lukas curses as he has no other choice and drops the barrier. When he does, his eyes go wide as he stares at the scene before him. "No..."

Daniel, Henry, Alfred, Francis, and even Ludwig are standing there. The first four are pretty beat up, but they stand proud and tall none the less. Argon is in the air, having been using his fire breath. He still has his injures and then he shrinks back down landing on Henry's head.

Ludwig sighs in relief. "I can't believe my plan actually worked out. I'm glad."

"Sorry we're late to the party!" Alfred laughs and gives a thumbs up. "Took us longer than expected to deal with each of our opponents! Hey Daniel, the guy I was fighting, the one who had the axe? He was also a shifter! Said he got his belt from his dad. He was a cheetah."

Daniel raises a brow. "Really...well I had to deal with an elk. Which by the way was NOT easy." He groans and rolls his shoulders. "Those antlers were hell of annoying, I'll tell you that."

"Hey! At least your guy didn't shoot exploding bullets!" Henry waves his arms around. "His overgrown wolf wasn't fun to deal with either! Poor Argon had a real tough time...I don't do well with explosions..."

Alfred laughs and slaps his back, nearly making him fall over. "Dude, you had to deal with a pyro?!"

"Well none of you had to deal with arrows being shot at you. They could explode, multiply, electrocute, blind or freeze! Plus he turned himself into some big hulking beast!" He cracks his neck. "That was terrible..." He pouts.

Ludwig scratches the top of his head. "Well at least you all won. I think that's the most important part we have to remember here...we still have one more to go..."

Lukas clenches his fists and grits his teeth, his eyes seeping with rage. "You...all managed to defeat each and every member...no...my friends...you're all dead." He takes a step forward.

Mara holds her arm out. "You're going to have to get through me first. I am your opponent after all." She glances back at the four. "You've all fought hard. Now you can take a break."

They all fell backwards and let out a sigh of relief. "Oh thank god...I don't think I have any fight left in me..." Henry sighs in relief.

"Dude, I used all my strength to stand..." Alfred groans.

"Oui, even I'm starting to feel a little sore..."

Daniel is snoring as he falls asleep once he's on the ground.

Lukas glares. "Tch. Fine. So be it. But once I'm done with you, your little friends will be joining you soon enough." He lunges forward, his hand glowing white and ready to aim a fist in her face.

Mara's own hands glow black and she catches his fist. She uppercut him in the jaw and let's go of his fist, watching him fly up in the air. She jumps up in the air then round house kicks him in the side, sending him crashing back down to the ground. She lands gracefully on the ground and takes a deep breath.

Suddenly a blast of white, that looks like a snowball, hits her and sends her flying back and crashing into a building.

Lukas pants and stands up, blood covering about half o his face. He hisses and holds his bruising side. He was sure she broke a few bones.

Mara stumbles forward some blood dripping on the ground. She pants and coughs out a little blood into her hand. She stands up straight. Lukas stands up and he stares at her. She stares back. They both start to walk towards each other.

Ludwig is sweating a bit as he watches the two. He isn't sure what is going to happen next. They seem to be in bad shape and isn't sure how they can still be standing. He gulps and a cold sweat builds on his forehead. All he can do is watch and see what happens.

The two stop about 2 feet away from each other. The tension is growing with every second that ticks by. Then each of their hands glow. Before one can even blink, they both release a shot of energy at each other. They are both hit in the chest. They slide back a few feet. The attacks are strong, but not strong enough to blast the other away. They know it won't be to long until one of them falls over. They both sway and legs shake a little.

Lukas stares at her. "I have to say...you're strong...your team must be as well...if they managed...to beat everyone..." He coughs out some blood.

Mara nods. "Your team...must also be...strong...to have them complain so much...and get so injured..." She coughs, a little blood coming out.

Lukas gives a dry chuckle. "Well, I appreciate that...you're very strong...but...I am too...or so...I thought...congrats...you...win." He coughs out a puddle of blood and falls over, his eyes closing. He hits the ground with a soft thud.

"YOU DID IT!" Henry, Alfred, and Francis say happily.

Francis rushes over. "Oh mon deiu. You're badly injured...we have to get out of here and go somewhere safe. You all need medical attention honestly."

Mara nods and nearly falls over. Francis catches her. "Right...Henry can Argon fly us to a safe distance away from here?" She looks at the man who rubs his chin and asks his little buddy. He gives a thumbs up. "Right. Everyone, it's time to go!"

"Don't have to tell me twice." Daniel crosses his arms. He just woke up from his map. "Let's get the HELL outta here. We've spent to much time here as is."

Argon flies off Henry's shoulder and lands on the ground then changes into his large form. Everyone gets on him and he takes off into the sky, flying away. Each member relaxes on the dragon's back, happy the battle is over. They reach a cave a few minutes into their flight and take shelter there.

While Francis is treating Mara first, he couldn't help but ask her a question. "So Mara...where exactly is Diablo? Do you have any idea where to start looking?" He cleans the blood around the wound on her side. She nods. "Indeed. I have a very strong feeling he's exactly where I first met him. He's not a very hard being to understand. So we will go there first."

Francis nods. "Oui, of course." He smiles down at her. "Then the whole team will be back together again~" He chuckles.

~o~o~o~o~o~

"Here's another one of them! Looks like he's alive, but barely." Allen drags over an unconscious Berwald and lays him on the ground next to Tino.

Ivan sighs and crosses his arms. "We must have just missed them...but I am glad they are being alive. They need urgent medical care. Where's the nearest Hospital?"

The Elimination Squad all lain down next to each other. Tino's Wolf, Hana, is awake and not in any life threatening danger. She is lying down, close to the group, whimpering lightly.

Monika rubs her chin in thought. "That would be about a four hour run on foot, but with Artemis, maybe a few minutes, sir!" She salutes.

He nods. "That is good. Get them all on Artemis! Then we shall take them to the hospital!"

"Sir!" They all say and lie down the injured on to the back of the dragon. Then they all get on his back. Vlad whistles and Artemis flaps his wings, hovering over the ground. He picks up the big wolf and takes off into the air, heading to the hospital.

"What's going to be our next plan of action after we see they are taken care of sir?" Monika asks.

"Well, we will be regrouping. They only need one more member now...much to my dismay..." He mutters and look down, rubbing his temples.

Roderich tightens his grip on the hilt of his sword. "Diablo..." He narrows his eyes. "That demon is going to answer my questions whether he likes it or not...I'll make sure he suffers a painful death when I'm done with him..."

Feliciano gulps a bit and pokes his fingers together. "Ah, Roderich, you're starting to scare me a little bit."

He sighs and loosens his grip. "Sorry..."

The dragon roars a he sails through the sky towards the hospital.

With one of the toughest battles fought, the Shadow Soldiers decide to rest for a little bit and gather their strength. Unbeknownst to them, their journey was only going to get harder from there on out.

 **AAAAAHHHHH! I AM SOOOO SORRY! I have been overrun with work and school, I was just...ugh, not motivated to work on this chapter with edits, but I finally finished and here's your chapter guys! I hope you enjoy! I know it's not Sunday, but you all have waited long enough.**


	20. Chapter 20: Last But Not Least

After two days of everyone relaxing and healing, they are off into the sky once more. Daniel is asleep as usual. Alfred and Henry are talking about random things. Francis is mixing things in vials. Mara was sitting next to Ludwig and they are talking.

"So how did Diablo get that nickname?" He couldn't help but ask.

Mara sighs a bit. "Well...it means devil..." Ludwig nods, knowing that much. "He simply received the nickname for the simple face that he is a devil."

Ludwig raises a brow. "A devil...? So he acts mischievous and underhanded?"

She shakes her head. "Yes and no. He is an actual devil. From hell. He has horns, a tail, demonic powers."

Ludwig furrows his brows. "Wait, what? Seriously?"

Francis chuckles, shaking a vile. "Oui. Are you that surprised? I mean, we have a man who controls and a dragon and turns into one when he swallows said dragon. Another man who can create explosions with the snap of his fingers. A werewolf. Then our leader who controls shadows and sometimes blend into them. I'm the only normal one here."

"I don't think a doctor who likes cutting open people and experimenting on them is considered 'normal'." Henry chimes in, chuckling lightly.

"Dude is right ya know." Alfred comments, holding up his index finger.

"So where exactly are we going?" Ludwig raises a brow and looks at Mara.

"We are going to where I first met the man. I have a strong feeling he will be there. As for if he will join us? Well, that I am not sure. But I have a strong feeling he won't decline."

"What else would he have going on that he can't help?" Henry scratches the top of his head. "But I can't wait to see him! He's super great! He may be a devil, but he's pretty nice and cares about all of us."

Alfred nods and smiles. "Oh yeah! Plus he know how to have a good time! He's the life of the party whenever we celebrate!" Alfred looks off in the distance fondly.

Daniel's eyes snap open and he sits up. "ARGON ON YOUR RIGHT!" He suddenly yells.

The dragons quickly make a sharp left turn, avoiding a stream of flames that would have hit him. He hisses and comes to a stop in the air. Floating down a few feet away from him is Artemis. Vladimir is standing on his head, grinning.

Henry runs to the top of Argon's head and glares. "Vlad! What the hell?! You caught up with us that quick?!" He slowly reaches back to grab his hammer.

Vlad laughs and crosses his arms. "Of course we did! Come on, tracking you all isn't THAT hard. I mean we are a lot smarter." He slowly reaches inside his jacket to grab his flail.

Henry looks back. "Mara, I don't know what you want me to do. It might be easier to fight if I let you guys down."

Mara shakes her head. "I am sure you wish to fight, we are still all healing. I'm not sure we are up for such a tough fight at the moment. We need to try to escape."

Henry nods and lets go of his hammer. "Got it!" He grins and gives a thumbs up. "Hold on tight everyone!" Argon flies straight past him at a high speed. Everyone holds on tight to the dragon's back.

Vlad blinks a few times. "Alright! After 'em!" Vlad points. Artemis flaps wings and gives chase after them.

Daniel looks back and squints his eyes. "Seems he's the only one on his dragon! Others were probably waitin on the ground hoping Henry would let us off!" He says loud enough for everyone to hear.

"Well! Just makes things easier!" Henry laughs. "Alfred! Mind creating some smoke clouds for us!" He looks back at him.

He grins big and nods. "You got it buddy!" He laughs and raises one hand in the air and snaps his fingers a few times, creating explosions and leaving clouds of smoke behind.

Artemis stops just before he can reach the clouds of smoke. He growls and flaps his wings, trying to blow away the smoke. When the smoke clears up, they are gone. Vlad blinks a few times and smirks. "Just according to plan~" He chuckles lightly and crosses his arms. "Good job Artemis."

~o~o~o~o~o~

Argon starts to slow down when he sees they aren't being followed. Henry sighs in relief. "Man, that was close. But we outsmarted him!" He grins and pets Argon on the head. "Good job buddy!"

"Man that was easy!" Alfred grins. "Maybe those guys are starting to lose their touch! But also because of our sweet skills!" Alfred laughs and Henry laughs with him.

Mara rubs her chin in thought. "It was almost...to easy...something doesn't seem right...We need to land." She demands. "We can not reach our destination while flying. This is as close as we can get."

Henry nods. "Alright Argon! You heard her! Time to land!" Argon nods and swoops down. He lands on the ground and everyone gets off and he shrinks down. Henry holds out his hand to him and he climbs in it and up his arm then rests on his shoulder and yawns.

Mara nods at everyone. "Alright. Follow me very closely. The forest will get thicker and I don't want anyone getting lost, okay?"

They all salute in understanding. "Yes ma'am!" They all say. With that they follow closely behind their leader, walking into the more dense part of the forest. Little did they know that they were being watched from afar.

"So...what's Diablo's actual name?" Ludwig couldn't help but ask.

"Oh! Right! He goes by Gilbert." Henry smiles. "I'm sure you'll like him. Though he can be a bit...overbearing at first." He scratches the top of his head.

Alfred laughs. "That's true. He loves messing with people and trying to scare 'em. But despite being a devil, he's a good guy deep down and pretty funny."

Francis chuckles lightly. "Oui, he's also a great drinking buddy. Though I don't think he can actually get drunk. But still he's fun. Also sadly immune to poison...I'd love to open him up and see what an actual devil looks like on the inside!" He whines and pouts.

Daniel grunts softly. "He's a loud obnoxious idiot. He's basically immortal so I don't feel bad for slicing through his neck when he gets annoying." He sets his hands behind his head. "But, I guess sometimes he's okay."

Ludwig was a bit excited to meet the last member of the Shadow Soldiers. They are so close. He couldn't wait. He must have been smiling because Henry smiles and wraps his arm around his shoulder.

"You seem pretty excited and that's understandable. Trust me! It'll be great having the gang together again. It's been to long." Henry smiles a bit bitterly as he looks off to the side. "Much to long."

Mara stops and points. "Here. This is where we first met." In front of them is a large abandoned mansion. Windows are busted, wood is decaying and falling off, moss and fungus is starting to grow on the outside. It is a miracle the thing could still stand to be honest. Mara walks up close to the building and reaches into her pocket, pulling out a small stuffed yellow bird. She sets it on the ground.

"Gilbert! You are in need once more. Your friends are gathered here as well. We are being hunted down by the kingdom. For what exact reasons we are not sure. You're life is in danger as well. A young man has come in search of us and you're the only one left. He wants us to help save the kingdom from itself. So please, won't you join us once again?" She yells at the old house.

All is quiet for a solid minute. The house suddenly creaks and the clouds above begin to swirl above the house and darken. A loud laughter echos all around them. A strong gust of wind blows the toy into the booms and lightening crackles in the air, lighting the dark area.

"What? So the kingdom is trying to kill us and we're going to try and save it? Awwwwwh~ How noble~ It warms my cold, dead, heart." A voice echos around them.

Thunder strikes the ground a few feet away from Mara. Then a throne appears and sitting in it was a man with hair as white as snow, blood red eyes that could pierce the soul, and skin as pale as moonlight. His tongue runs over his sharp fangs then he grins. He wore a black suit with a white button up shirt. His hands are covered with black leather gloves and one his leather knee high boots lightly taps the ground as he idly pets the stuffed bird with one fingers. His thin black tail sways back and forth, the tip having an arrow shape at the end. His horns curl outward on his head sort of like a ram. His bat like wings are folded on his back. "Looks like everyone really is here." He smirks. Thunder and lighting crash and boom behind him. "So...what's this ab-AAHH!"

"GILBERT!" Henry and Alfred tackle him in a hug, making him fall back on his chair. The clouds then stop swirling and it becomes lighter once more.

"We missed you so much buddy!" Alfred laughs.

Henry nods big. "Oh yeah! I was wondering what happened to you!"

Mara sighs and rubs her temples. "Really Gilbert? Did you have to put on such a performance?"

Francis claps and smiles. "I thought it was très effrayant(Very scary) Gilbert." He chuckles softly.

Gilbert pushes the two off and sits up. "Come on! You guys totally ruined my AWESOME entrance! First impressions are everything ya know!" He waves his arms around. Argon is on the devil's head and purrs softly. He blinks and chuckles, rubbing the dragon on the head. "Hallo to you too Argon~"

Daniel crosses his arms. "Stop trying to be so damn flashy! We're being hunted you know! You're still an idiot...and when the hell did you start wearing a suit and tie?"

Gilbert blinks and pouts. "Hey! I needed to look all professional! Wait, what happened to those two huge axes you use to have...?"

Daniel blinks. "They were stolen! Okay?! Gosh! Can we just go already?!" He growls and looks off to the side.

"That's a really touchy subject for him." Henry whispers in his ear. Argon jumps back over to Henry's head and gets comfy.

Gilbert nods. "Oooohhhhh...weren't they like really heavy? Who the heck could steal those things?"

Alfred shrugs. "I dunno, but he doesn't like talking about it."

Ludwig blinks a few times and wasn't sure what to think. Was...this really a devil? He seemed a bit...harmless...well maybe because he was with friends and all, but still... "Er...hello! My name is Ludwig." He walks up to the devil.

Gilbert blinks and stands up, grinning big. "Nice to meet you. Gilbert at your service~" He reaches into his pocket and pulls out a card. "If you ever need a wish or contract, feel free to look me up~" He winks and cackles.

Ludwig takes the business card. It is all black and has Gilbert's name on it as well as a small picture of a yellow bird on it. "Er...thank you..?" Ludwig puts the card in his pocket.

"Now Gilbert, will you be coming along with us or not?" Mara crosses her arms and raises a brow. "We do need your help. Be aware you are also being hunted down and it's only a matter of time before they find you."

Gilbert laughs loudly and sets his hands on his hips. "Are you kidding me?! Hell yeah I'm coming! What the hell do you think I've been doing these past ten years?! Nothing! Sitting in that decaying house hoping something interesting would happen. So I'd be happy to come~ Just let me change." He snaps his fingers and dark chest appears in front of him.

He opens it and whistles, changing his clothes. He puts on a pair of black jeans and a belt that looked as if it were made out of snake hide with a skull buckle. He then slips on a white short sleeved shirt and a black leather jacket. He licks his lips and his tail sways back and forth. He kept his boots that he had on before and takes out a necklace with a little battle axe charm attached to it and puts it around his neck. "Alright, I'm ready to go." His wings spread out a bit.

Henry laughs loudly. "The gang's all here!" He grins big and stretches. "Alright! The Shadow Soldiers are back in business! It's time we head towards the kingdom!" He points forward.

Mara walks up to him and moves his arm a few degrees to the left. "The capital is that way. We are very far from the capital. I hope you're aware of that. It'll take us about four months to get there and that's if we don't stop."

"So we should get started Already. We won't be making any progress standing here." Daniel sets his hands in his pockets.

"Oh, you won't be making any progress at all." An all to familiar voice calls out. Walking up to the group is Ivan. He smiles at the group and the rest of his team files in. "Your journey will be ending here."

Mara narrows her eyes. "Ivan...I knew it was to good to be true...you were all following us weren't you?"

He chuckles lightly. "My, you're a very smart woman. You are being correct. We followed you here. We are going to be stopping you. We are Divine Guards, but our special team is known as the Holy Defenders."

Gilbert is confused for a minute then he understands. "Ooohhhh, so you're the enemy! I get it." He laughs and crosses his arms. "So leader, what exactly shall our plan of action be?"

Mara rubs her chin in thought. "Well...it seems we have another fight on our hands, but we aren't still healed completely...we had to face another enemy a few days ago."

Gilbert raises a brow and grins. "That explains why you all look like hell and your clothes are pretty beat up." He laughs and grins. "But I can help make you all feel a bit better~!" He grins and snaps his fingers. His friends are suddenly glowing in a dim light and their wounds heal up completely and their clothes are patched back together like new. "I can't heal to much, but you were all healed up enough for me to bring you back up to 100 percent health."

Alfred laughs and looks at himself and his clothes. "Thanks dude! I feel totally rad again!" He smirks.

Daniel stretches and rolls his shoulders. "Oh yeah. I feel a hell of a lot better.

Francis sighs happily and smiles. "Ah~! I feel fantastique~! Thank you mon ami~"

Henry grins and puffs out his chest. "Oh man! I feel like I can take on the world!"

Mara glances at Henry. "Even so...I don't think we should waste to much time here. Henry, I believe it's time. You're our best bet at the moment."

Henry's eyes shimmer and he jumps up and laughs loudly. "YES! FINALLY! I HAVEN'T DONE THIS SINCE I MET LUDWIG!" He holds out his hand and snickers. Argon squeaks happily and climbs down to Henry's hand. "That's right buddy! It's our time to shine."

Alfred laughs and rubs his head. "Oh man I haven't seen this in years!"

Daniel groans and sighs. "Oh boy if we're relying on him doing THAT I guess we really are in a tight spot."

Francis grins. "It is quite impressive I must say. It's been much to long since I've seen that form."

Gilbert cackles and his tail swishes from side to side. "I gotta say, I do love it when goes full throttle!"

Ludwig's eyes grow wide. "Oh...right...I nearly forgot..."

Ivan raises a brow and looks confused. That is until he sees Henry lifting up Argon by the tail and holdings him over his open mouth. "Aaahhh..." He looks back at Vladimir who looks ready to explode. He chuckles softly and nods. "Alright...since they want to play that game, we can to~"

Vlad jumps in the air and laughs. "YES! YOU ALL HAVEN'T SEEN MY TRUE POWER UNTIL TODAY!" Artemis jumps up and climbs to his hand and squeaks. Vlad smirks. "Oh yeah~ We really get to show 'em pal~"

Allen grins and crosses his arms. "I GOTTA see this. He keeps braggin about it."

Monika nods. "I am also quite curious as to what this 'dragonoid' form of yours is you tend to brag about, looks like."

Feliciano nods and grins. "Si~! I really wanna see too! I bet it'll be awesome!"

Roderich didn't say anything as he glares daggers at the devil just a short run away from him. "That filthy demon..." He grips the hilt of his sword.

Vlad holds Artemis by the tail over his open mouth. They both let go at the same time and swallow their dragon's. They smirk and twitch a bit before a bright shining light in the shape of a dragon appear on their chests. Vlad becomes surrounded in blue flames while Henry in red flames. They shoot into the air, the flames turning into egg-like shapes. They rapidly grow into larger sizes until they are huge. Then the egg shapes made from flames crack open.

 **Hello everyone! This is the latest chapter and yes, the next chapter shall be...VERY interesting with an epic fight! I know you'll all enjoy very much!**


	21. Chapter 21: The Battle of Giants

The area grows dark as two large creatures hover in the air. Henry grins and lowers himself on the ground. He flexes his muscled arms and smirks. He stands once more at his a hundred foot tall height. Dark red scales covering most of his body and beige ones covering his pot belly and lower jaw. The spikes running from the top of his head down his spine and to the tip of his tail add to his intimidating look. His trusty war hammer strap to his back and steel wrist cuffs snug on his wrists. He snorts out a puff of smoke, the horn on his nose nice and pointed as well as his bull-like horns. His emerald green eyes glow brightly as he adjusts his fur loin cloth a bit.

Landing on the ground as was is Vlad who grins. Standing the same height. Ice blue scales cover him from head to toe. He is more slim compared to Henry and has sculpted abs on his stomach and nice strong muscles on his arms. His snout is more elongated, sharp fangs poking out. The claws on his hands and feet are black. He has small black horns poking out of his head. Strap to his back is his weapon. He wears a pair of black fur shorts. His blood red eyes glow as he narrows them.

Ludwig looks up between the two giants. It is mesmerizing to him, but it also feels like some sort of dream.

A hand lowers down for them. "Alright, come on guys." Henry says in his booming deep voice. They quickly climb on top his massive hand. He lifts them up to the top of his head where they hop off.

Vlad laughs and crosses his arms. "You look like an overgrown tub of lard." He says in his loud deep voice.

Henry reaches back and grabs his weapon. "Tub of lard? Well, how about you come over here and say that to my face?" He snorts out a heavy cloud of smoke from his nostrils.

"Dudes, I think we better hurry inside before the battle of the giants starts up. I don't think they're going to hold back either." Alfred raises his hand and laughs nervously.

"Wait, inside...? What inside?" Confusion begins to cross his face and he starta to follow everyone to the top spike on his head. It's big enough to be a house a small house. "Wait...what?!" For some reason, it has a door and windows on it. Like some sort of house. Their is even a little chimney sticking out on the side.

"Yep! A long time ago the king had some guys carve out a little hangout space for us if we ever needed it. Came in handy plenty of times." Gilbert grins and chuckles.

"Some workers carved it out and decorated while some very skilled wizards put a few spells on it." Mara says, opening the door.

Inside is very nice. A nice plush couch that can seat three people, an arm chair, a recliner chair, a fire place, a small kitchen, two book shelves one with actual books, the other with pillows and sheets for sleeping. A dining room area with a table and chairs.

Alfred stretches and sits down on the couch. "So now we just sit here and relax. Let Henry take on the other giant dragon."

Mara picks up a book and sits down in the arm chair. "He can handle this. We can just relax for now."

Francis sits next to Alfred on the couch and Gilbert sits next to Francis. Daniel sits in the recliner and pulls the lever lifting up the leg and foot rest and then falls asleep. Ludwig sighs and sits down on a chair and looks out the window.

Both dragon's spread their wings and take off into the air. Henry reaches back and takes out his weapon. He flies straight at Vlad and swings the axe half at him. Vlad flies up then lowers him behind the other and takes out his flail and spins it around. He swings it, hitting Henry in his side. Henry flies up and inhales deeply, releasing a stream of fire at him. Vlad inhales deeply and releases a stream of fire right into his.

Both streams of fire are an equal match. They both stop and Vlad flies straight at Henry, slamming into his gut with his head and sending him crashing into the ground. Henry sits up and rubs his head.

Vladimir laughs as he flies overhead. "Wow! I thought you'd be a hell of a lot more tough! Come on, you're a just a big fat lizard!" He taunts.

Henry growls and stands up. "Who are you calling fat?!" He tosses his war hammer up and down a few times and rears back his his arm and throws it. The weapon spins rapidly in the air and the hammer half slams into Vladimir's chest, making him cough and fall to the ground. Henry laughs and spreads his wings, flying over and picking up his weapon as he flies past. He lands a few feet away as Vladimir gets up and rubs his head.

They both narrow their eyes at each other. Vladimir smirks. "Time to get serious." The chain on his mace retracts into the handle of his weapon, his flail now a mace. He points his weapon at him. "Ice Spikes!" The crystals on his weapon start to glow and a frosty mist surrounds them. He aims it forward, sharp spikes of ice shoot out at Henry.

"HA! Fire against ice?! You're losing your common sense!" He inhales deeply and releases a stream of fire at the ice spikes. But when his fire hit the spikes, they didn't melt. They fly straight through the fire and pierce him in the stomach, right shoulder, chest, and left shoulder. He grits his teeth and glares at him. "Okay...so you managed a few good hits..." He pulls out the icicles. He spins his war hammer around then brings it up over his head before slamming it down on the ground. "Quick Sand Trap!"

Suddenly the ground beneath Vlad's feet becomes much more soft and thick. His eyes go wide and he looks down. suddenly he is sinking into a pit of quick sand! He tries to pull out from it, but he wasn't moving! He spreads his wings and flaps them, trying to fly out, but it isn't working.

Henry laughs and crosses his arms. "That stuff is much thicker than your regular quicksand! It's like trying to pull yourself out of a very heavy boulder! Then when it hardens it's even harder to pull yourself out! Like being trapped in a block of steel!" The ground then hardens around Vlad's feet and Henry laughs. "Now, how about a little payback." He spreads his wings, holding out the axe half of his weapon and lunges forward. He slides to a stop a few feet away, the blade coated in a thin layer of blood.

Vladimir yells and leans over a bit, clutching his bleeding chest. "Bastard..." He inhales and breathes light blue flames down on his feet. Suddenly a patch of ice forms around his feet. Vladimir brings up his weapon and slams it down on the ice, cracking it and breaking his feet out from the ground.

Henry blinks and rubs his eyes. "How did you do that?! That's suppose to be my super hard trap to break out of!" He stomps his foot and growls.

"It's easy. My flames can both burn OR freeze. So all I did was freeze both the ground above and around, my feet, turning it into ice which is easy enough for me to shatter." He smirks and twirls around his mace. "Now let's continue." He holds out his weapon towards Henry. "Fire in the hole!" The head of the flail shoots out like a canon ball and hits Henry in the gut, making his eyes go wide. Knocking the air out of his lungs and the spikes pierce his gut. he falls over, hissing and clutching his slowly bruising gut.

"Now where's that confident attitude of yours now? HA!" He blows out smoke from his nostrils. "Why don't you just give it up. You know you won't be able to beat me. So, let's cut this short." The chain retracts a little bit so it's a little over a few feet long to him. He walks toward the fallen dragon and swings his flail around. He stands next to Henry and swings his weapon up.

Henry's eyes snap open and he rolls out of the way. He laughs. "You're going to have to be much more quick than that!" He stands up and swings his weapon up. Spike Bed!" He swings down the hammer, making a large crack in the earth and sharp spikes start to shoot up from the ground towards Vlad.

He takes off into the air before one of those spikes impale him. "You're a lot tougher than you look." He inhales deeply and releases a stream of fire at him.

Henry inhales and releases a stream of fire as well. Suddenly a barrage of icicles come shooting at him, making him gasp and stop breathing fire as they stab through almost every part part of his body. He jumps back, gritting his teeth. "I'm really starting to hate ice." He stares down at the multiple icicles sticking out of his body.

Vlad lands on the ground and smirks. He lunges at Henry and swings his flail around, hitting him over the head multiple times. "You. Aren't. Going. to. WIN!" He swings with each word. He swings up, hitting him under the chin and sending him up off his feet and landing on his back.

Henry groans and blinks a few times, his vision a bit blurry. He slowly reaches up and grips one of the icicles and yells as he pulls it out. He pants heavily. He pulls out the others, yelling each time. He grits his teeth and slowly pushes himself to sit up. He pushes himself on his feet and groans a bit, rubbing his head. "You're a lot tougher than I thought."

Vlad smirks a bit and crosses his arms. "Try not to underestimate me to much." He laughs and swings his weapon around."

Henry inhales deeply and releases a stream of fire. Vlad inhales and releases a stream of fire as well.

They both hit and push against each other.

Henry spreads his wings and takes off into the sky.

Vlad growls and spreads his wings, taking off into the sky.

Henry twirls his hammer around then flies at him, swinging the axe half at him. Vlad blocks the attack with his weapon and they both glare at each other. They both push back.

Henry smirks and throws his weapon high into the air.

Vlad blinks and watches the weapon flip rapidly in the air as it goes up. "What...the...?" His eyes go wide when Henry rams his shoulder into his gut, sending him flying back a bit.

Henry laughs and holds out his hand, catching his weapon. He flies towards him and spins around, slamming his hammer in the side of his head. "Everyone falls for that trick!" He crosses his arms and grins.

Vlad goes crashing into the ground and groans a bit, rubbing his head a bit. "What the hell...? I hate that bastard." He eyes go wide when he sees a stream of flames heading straight for him. He yells when they hit.

Henry laughs and lands on the ground. "Take that! I love that distraction. But I think it's time we end this, yeah?" He puts his war hammer in his holster and grabs his ankles then goes up into the sky.

Vladimir flails around, trying to get out of his grasp. "Put me down! Hey! Are you listening?! Let GO!" He isn't sure what he is planning, but it is hard to fly when being held upside down.

Henry smirks. "Bad choice of words." When they are a few thousand feet in the air he begins spinning up and down in the air, slowly gaining speed.

Vladimir yells, his face slowly turning green. They are spinning so fast they look like blurs in the air. Henry suddenly lets go of Vladimir and he goes flying straight down into the ground like a comment. He lands right on his back, making the ground shake like an earthquake. His impact is so hard, he is lying in a small hole in the shape of his body. He groans and blinks a few times. When his vision clears, his eyes go wide.

"WHOLE TON BOMBER!" Henry falls from the sky at a very fast rate with his arms and legs crossed. Vladimir can't move and grits his teeth. Henry lands on top of him in a sitting position, covering his whole torso area, a large grin on his face. The impact created a large shock wave that blew thousands of tree from the ground. When he lands, Vlad's legs, tail, and head to jerk up under the great pressure. He coughs out a lot of blood and he goes limp, his eyes roll back into his head. Henry spreads his wings and flies up. Vladimir glows and shrinks back down to his human form. He gags and his dragon crawls out of his mouth and falls over on the ground, passing out. Vladimir is out cold, his eyes roll to the back of his head.

Henry laughs and flexes his muscles. "Yeah! I did it! Oh man...that was a lot tougher than I thought." He sighs and takes off into the air and flies away.

Vladimir opens his eyes for a few seconds, watching him fly away before they close once more.

A few minutes later, his team slide down into the massive hole and stand around the passed out Dragon Tamer. Allen whistles and looks around. "Man, this is one deep hole...you kinda got you ass handed to ya." He snorts a bit. "Or should I say-OW!" He whines and rubs his head that Monika hit.

"This is no time for jokes." She says sternly.

Artemis whines and crawls toward Vladimir, rubbing his head against him. Ivan bends down and gently sets his hand on his head and smiles softly. "You did the great job...I know next time you will be beating him..."

Vladimir opens his eyes and looks up at him. He smiles a bit and coughs out some more blood. His eyes close once more. Ivan stands up. "We must move him quickly. He's in serious condition. We have to be finding some hospital as fast as we can."

Feliciano nods. "Alright. The closest hospital is over a day away though! So we have to hurry!" He starts to look a little panicked. "He's doesn't look so good..."

"A day away? Do we even HAVE that sort of time?!" Monika asks, trying to think of a way to get him there asap. "Without Artemis I don't know if we can get him there fast enough."

Allen smirks and laughs. Everyone turns to look at him. He growls and his form starts to shift to that of his fox hybrid state. "You don't need a dragon! You have me! I can run at great speeds, remember? Just put him on my back and I'll run him to the hospital! Trust me I'll get him there by nightfall." He stands on all fours and wags his tail.

They look at each other and nod. Ivan carefully lifts him up and sets him on Allen's back. Feliciano uses some wire to help tie him down to Allen's back.

"Now you'll be alright Vlad." Feliciano smiles. "Allen is going to get you some help."

"Now are you sure you can do this?" Monika asks, crossing her arms.

Allen rolls his eyes. "Trust me. I can do this easy. I'll help get our friend here the care he needs. Just give me the directions."

"Just make sure he doesn't fall off. Also be careful of those sharp turns and trees." Roderich says wagging his finger at him.

"Yeah yeah I get it! Come on, give me the directions!" He groans a little bit.

Feliciano points Eastward. "It's to the East. Just keep going East and you should be able to find a dirt road. Follow that towards the mountains and you'll find the medical center."

Allen nods. "Right! Meet me there!" He bounds off out of the massive hole and into the woods, leaving a trail of of dust behind him.

Ivan looks on with a worried look. "I hope they'll be alright..."

Monika sets her hand on his shoulder. "I'm sure they'll all be alright. Now we have to figure out what to do next...as well as report to the King."

Ivan nods. "You are being right..." He turns to his team and smiles. "They nearly killed one of our own...so this is personal."

~o~o~o~o~o~

Henry's head is feeling light. His injuries are really starting to set in and he was losing altitude. His vision becomes blurry and he shakes his head. He lands on his feet in front of a cave and cough out a puddle of blood. He glows and shrinks back to his human form, his friends landing behind him as he passes out and spits up Argon who whines and lies on the ground.

Henry slowly opens his eyes. He moves to sit up but hisses.

"On mon ami, don't move...you're very injured." Francis gently guides him to lie back down.

Henry is lying on the ground in the cave. Francis finishes bandaging up. He smiles down at him. "You did a great job out there."

"Yeah dude! You were SO boss! It's been a long while since we've seen you go all out!" Alfred laughs and looks down at him.

Henry chuckles lightly. "Yeah...it took a lot out of me...he was...stronger than I thought...he'd be..." Argon crawls up on his chest and is bandaged as well. He purrs and curls up on him.

Ludwog sits down next to him. "So...you both sustain any damage done to you while in that large state?"

Henry smiles and nods. "Yep, pretty much. Any injury we take, we both get. So that's why it's more of a last resort type of thing. I also get like SUPER tired...so does Argon...usually takes us a day or two to recover just from being in that state. But with all these injuries? Maybe a week and we'll be fine."

"Well, seeing as we've gathered everyone here I say it's time we take a break to discuss everything." Mara crosses her arms.

Everyone gathers around the fire and Mara takes a deep breath. "Now that we're all gathered together. We have to make our way back to the capital of the kingdom...that will take us a few months to actually get there." She crosses her arms. "Our best bet is to go as soon as we can."

Gilbert groans loudly. "So can someone explain to me again what we're doing? I didn't quite get the memo you know."

"Well, Ludwig here wishes for our hep in helping the kingdom. Seeing as their is corruption and deceit riddled across the kingdom." Mara informs.

Gilbert raises a brow. "Yeah and? Hasn't the kingdom always has some form of corruption going on in it? I don't see how we can help or even why we should care."

"I would usually agree with you...but, something has been going on...I have no idea what, but the king hasn't even made any effort to do anything to help his people...it just doesn't sit right..." Mara closes her eyes.

Before anyone could say anything, the fire suddenly goes out and green flames shoot up, hitting the ceiling of the cave. "All shall be revealed." A voice says, echoing through the cave.

 **Heeellllloooo! Everyone! I hope you all enjoyed this epic fight of giants! And yes, something VERY big is about to be discussed and uncovered! :D You don't wanna miss it!**


	22. Chapter 22: The Prophecy

Ludwig's eyes go wide. "It's you! From before in my dreams!"

The hooded figure nods. "That is correct. Now listen closely...long ago. A prophecy was made. It was said that a great calamity would befall this world. An ancient evil force would make its way into this world and influence a very powerful man. With him under his thumb, he will begin preparations for what is called The Awakening. The day all evil beings emerge from their long slumber."

"Wait wait wait!" Daniel puts up his hands. "How the HELL are we suppose to trust you? How do we know you're telling the truth?! And if you are, how are we sure you're not the evil one here?"

"Well, I suppose you are correct in suspecting me of being the evil one. But remember, I did help you rescue the one named Francis. I can assure you that am here to help you. Now that you're all here, I have come to aid you all in your journey. I can not physically do anything, but I can and will guide you all as well as use my magic to help in anyways I can. I have helped long ago in the past. I am the one who gave the king the idea to create a unique squad of assassins to aid him in his dilemma. Please, let me help you. This is much bigger than you are all aware of. Great forces are gathering and need to be stopped."

"Is anyone else like REALLY freaked out right now?" Alfred asks, scratching the top of his head. "This is like something out of some weird fictional story! I mean, destiny, danger, world possibly ending!"

"Well...I have heard legend of evil monsters, spirits, beasts, and demons, sleeping deep in the underworld...I don't know if it's true but I know I've heard about those. Dunno if those things are what he's talking about." Gilbert says, crossing his arms.

Henry groans. "My head hurts. This is all to weird. I mean, destiny? Evil spirit ghost thing?" He scratches the top of his head. "What do you think Argon?" Argon looks up at him and tilts his head. He squeaks a few times. "Really...?"

Mara rubs her chin, deep in thought.

Francis sighs. "I have no idea what to think about this. Their are just so many questions that need answers."

Daniel growls a little bit. "Well, I'm having a hard time believing a single word of this thing!" He crosses his arms.

"I believe him." Ludwig says with confidence. All eyes now on him. "I can't say I fully understand the magnitude of this whole situation...but I know something big is going on and I will do whatever I can to stop it. This is why I brought you all together...to help save the kingdom from being destroyed. Granted. I wasn't sure how that was going to be accomplished. But, this has to be it. So I believe him and I say we let him help."

Henry stares at Ludwig and smiles lightly. "Well...he did help by telling Ludwig where we can find Francis. We trusted him before, so why not now?"

Francis crosses his arms and nods. "Oui, that is true...I don't think we have much of a choice to be honest. If all of this is true. Then we can't ignore this..."

Mara sighs a bit. "Well...I suppose you all have valid points...alright, we shall let him assist us in our journey...who knows what could actually be going on here...it does all seem so strange."

Daniel grunts softly. "Well if the leader says okay, then I guess we are letting the...thing tag along. But I'm still having a hard time believing it."

"Thank you all. You can summon me anytime with this mirror. I shall assist you in anyway I can, so don't hesitate to call." He tosses Ludwig a hand mirror. "You may call me Drac. I look forward to assisting you all." The flames slowly start to die down. "I hope to be of great use to you all." Then the flames disappear, the regular fire flickers back to life.

"...so that was pretty weird, right?" Alfred looks around at his friends.

Henry nods. "Yeah...I mean...we're suppose to like...save the world? That's some heavy stuff. But I think we can pull it off!"

Gilbert grins and throws his arms up in the air. "Man am I glad to be back! Kesesese~ This sounds like it's going to be fun!" He laughs.

Ludwig looks down at the mirror and blinks, staring at his own reflection. "The Awakening...evil being released into the world...he told me it was my destiny to bring you all together...only I could do it..."

Alfred smiles and pats his back. "Well you did manage to bring us all together again!" He chuckles. "But now we REALLY have to get our heads in the game! If the whole world is actually in danger then we have to do everything in our power to stop it! It feels so good to be the good guys!"

"YEAH!" Henry and Gilbert both jump up and throw their arms in the air.

Henry suddenly whines from his injuries and lies back down."Okay...no more jumping up like that...sorry, got a little overexcited."

Francis sighs and rubs his temples. "Henry, please keep still...you're going to need all your strength." He goes over to check over him to make sure he didn't open any of his stitches.

He laughs nervously and smiles. "Sorry Doc."

Daniel looks over at Mara who is in deep thought. "You believe any of this? It still sounds a bit weird to me if you ask. But, I can't say I don't truly believe him..."

"I really do believe something much bigger than we could possible imagine is happening here. I don't know much if anything about it, but I can sense this Drac was telling the truth and I trust him not to lead us wrong." She sighs and looks up. "I just hope we can actually handle this."

Daniel chuckles and smirks a bit. "Hey, we're the Shadow Soldiers. We can handle just about anything. Don't worry I know we can handle some evil spirit thing."

She smiles ever so lightly and shakes her head. "I'm sure you're right."

~o~o~o~o~o~

Arthur, the king, is walking down a flight of stone steps, carrying a torch. He mumbles to himself as he makes his way down the stairs. He soon comes to a door he unlocks with a key. He walks into the room with many jars bottles, and papers filling the room. But in the middle was a large black cauldron. He looks into it, a dark liquid inside of it.

"Well. It seems they all managed to assemble. This isn't good. What should I do...?"

The concoction soon starts to boil and glow red. Soon, red flames burst from the cauldron and soon a hooded figure appears. "No need to worry. I have already made plans in case this happened. They will not stop the plans I have laid out. As promised, this shall help your kingdom prosper and last thousands of years. The evil one guides this small group of assassins. They will cause nothing but death and destruction. They will come here, kill you, then utter chaos will ensue as the dark one releases evil beings from their slumber."

Arthur nods. "Of course. We must stop them as soon as we can. Don't worry. They will not be making it here. Every Divine Guard is out for their blood! As well as my special task force who will hound them until the bitter end!" He smiles and rubs his hands together. "So they may have gotten their whole team assembled but we can stop them." He nods. "Now...may I ask what exactly you have planned?"

The figures gives a light chuckle. "I have sent out a friend of mine to help dispose of the group. Soon they will be taking out each other, whether they like it or not."

Arthur laughs and nods. "That sounds great! Now. I must be off to do my kingly duties! I'll make sure to come back soon for another update."

"Alright. If you need anything your highness, feel free to give me a call anytime. i aim to help you in anyway I can." He bows.

Arthur nods. "Alright. Thank you once more." He turns on his heel and heads out the room and up the stairs once more. "I just hope we can stop those villains before it's to late."

~o~o~o~o~o~

Henry is asleep with Argon curled up on his chest, also asleep. The others are sitting around the fire.

Gilbert stretches his arms and grins big. "Man it feels great to be out of that dumb house! Ten years of being stuck in that place was boring, yet to me it didn't feel like ten years."

"Like...couldn't you just leave and go back home or somewhere else?" Alfred looks at him and chuckles lightly.

He rolls his eyes. "Why would I go back home? It's hell down there! Literally! Plus I burned to many bridges down there, so no going back." He cackles and grins big. "I mean, I could have gone other places, but I didn't know where to go." He shrugs. "But whatever. Just glad to be back with you guys!"

"So you're actually a devil?" Ludwig couldn't help but ask. He still has his doubts "Like you have demonic powers?"

Gilbert blinks and his tail swishes from side to side as he chuckles. "Ja. I'm an actual devil. I have many powers. I can possess people, turn into smoke, do a little bit of healing, teleport a certain distance, I can also fly, do a little summoning, super strength, and shoot demonic energy from my hands. That demon enough for ya?"

"Er...well, I suppose yes...it's just hard to believe is all-"

"HA! Hard to believe?!" Gilbert shakes his head. "You have a guy with a dragon he swallows to turn into a giant dragon hybrid thing. A chick who can control darkness. A doctor who can kick down a brick wall and loves cutting people open. A dude who creates explosions with the snap of his fingers. Then a guy who can turn into a werewolf because of a belt. But you find me being a devil hard to believe?"

"Gilbert." Mara says in a stern voice. "Don't be so rude."

Gilbert sets his hands behind his head. "I wasn't being rude at all. I'm being pretty nice ya know." He pouts a little bit.

Ludwig shakes his head. "It's fine really...my apologies if I upset you in some way..."

Gilbert laughs. "Geeze you're a stick in the mud aren't ya? You didn't upset me at all. So don't apologize."

"So...might I ask, how you joined...? I'm curious how Mara recruited a devil to the team."

Gilbert rubs his chin and looks up in thought. "Oh yes~ That wonderful day~"

 _~Flashback~_

 _It is a cool night. The sky clear of clouds. Mara is sitting in a tavern, drinking at the bar. "So...what can you tell me about this so called haunted mansion?" She asks the bar keep._

 _He raises a brow, staring at her. "You plan on going there? Don't. It's much to dangerous for anyone to into...it's said an evil, vile, ghost lives there, haunting the place. Creaking floors, making the whole place cold, throwing objects around. All sorts of stuff. If I were you I'd avoid it at any and all costs."  
_

 _She stands, setting her money on the table. "Thank you for the drink and information. Have a good night." She nods to him and turns on her heel, making her way out._

 _The bar keep raises a brow and watches her. "Hey! If you do go, I suggest being very careful!" He calls to her before the door closes. He sighs and shakes his head. "May the gods look over her."  
_

 _Rumors of an old abandoned house being haunted spread like wildfire in these parts. Many people went in, most came out. Their are a few incidents where people never came out. People figure they died or possibly sent to another world. Mara wants to check in on all these rumors.  
_

 _She travels through the thick forest, signs posted. 'BEWARE' 'TURN BACK' 'DANGER' are just a few she cares to read. Nothing is going to make her turn back._

 _Then she sees it. Standing right in the middle of a clearing is the old abandoned house. Decaying wood, broken glass, and an eerie silence that surrounds the area. She walks toward the house, stepping on the wooden step that leads to the porch. It creaks loudly as if ready to break away under her._

 _The door slowly creaks open, a cool breeze blowing back her hair a bit. She walks inside, the door slamming shut behind her. It is pitch black and suddenly candles flicker on. Though the fire is blue. They make a path down a hall._

 _"Welcome!" A voice suddenly echos all around her. "It's not every day I get a special guest such as yourself! So, why don't you follow the candles." The voice chuckles lightly._

 _Mara is a bit skeptical, but she doesn't have much of a choice. She follows the candles down the hall and to a grand pair of wooden doors. She grips the brass handles and pushes the creaking doors open.  
_

 _"Welcome!" The voice from before booms. Sitting at a desk is Gilbert, resting his chin on the palm of his hand as he has his elbow propped up on the arm of the chair he's sitting on._

 _Mara raises a brow. "Are you the one haunting this place?"_

 _He chuckles lightly. "Ja, that's me...I can warp the reality of the inside of the house pretty good, right?" He cackles and grins. "Now, what brings you here~?"_

 _She analyzes the strange being. The horns on his head, the tail flicking around behind him, those eyes filled with dark intentions. "I see...you're a very vile creature."_

 _"Oh~? Well, I am a devil after all. We are known for being quite the troublemakers. Kesesese~!" He looks into her eyes and licks his lips. "You're not all to normal yourself. Elemental I take it~? You have those eyes that screams it. You can control and manipulate a certain element. They're only a certain amount of people born with that ability every few decades...lucky you..."_

 _"Enough with this small talk. I have come here to solve this so called haunting...it seems you have been the culprit...now I have been assigned with forming an elite group of assassins. Seeing as you have great power-"_

 _"You want me to join?" He laughs loudly and slaps his knee, standing up. "What makes you think I'm just going to except this, huh?"  
_

 _"Being a devil. You are known for making contracts, are you not?" She raises a brow and looks at him. "We can make one right here, right now."_

 _He blinks and chuckles. "You're honestly willing to make a contract with me? You're willing to give up your soul for this cause? Seriously? You're one crazy chick!" He laughs and grins big, his tail swishing back and forth. "Look...since you had the courage to come here and you're an interesting girl, I'll join your little group. Free of charge~" He winks and grins. "It sounds like it'll be fun anyways." He sets his hands in his pockets. "Sounds more fun than haunting this dump."  
_

 _"I can not say this will be considered fun. But I suppose if you are agreeing I shall take it as a mission accomplished. In three weeks, meet me at this location. There you shall be filled in along with the others." She hands him a slip of paper._

 _He chuckles and takes it. "Sounds like fun~ Can't wait~"_

 _~o~o~o~o~o~_

"And that's pretty much it...now it's getting late. You all should go to sleep. I'll keep an eye out for any signs of danger." He grins, his tail swishing back and forth.

"Wait, don't you need sleep...?" Ludwig asks, rubbing his eyes as he was getting tired.

The devil rolls his eyes. "I'm a devil. I don't NEED sleep. So I will be up all night, watching out for the enemy."

Ludwig sighs and nods. "Well alright, if you're sure..." He stretches and gets a comfy spot where he closes his eyes and goes to sleep.

Gilbert looks out toward the forest. "Well, guess it's good to see everyone again." He grins and chuckles. "They haven't changed a bit...that's nice to know...makes me happy." He smiles softly.

Gilbert sits at the mouth of the cave, watching the forest. It's already been a few hours and he's pretty bored.

inside the forest, sitting under a tree is someone. This person takes out a flute and starts to play an eerie tune that echos through the forest. It travels through the trees and in the cave where the group is sleeping. Daniel and Argon's eyes snap open and start glowing purple. Soon the glowing fades and their eyes become dull and lifeless. Daniel slowly stands up, a small trail of drool dripping down from the corner of his mouth. Argon spreads his wings and flies up, landing on his shoulder. Daniel starts to walk toward the cave entrance.

Gilbert blinks and looks back, standing up. "Hey! Daniel? What are you doing up? It's way to late in the night for you to even be thinking about waking up! Let alone walking around." He cackles. "Wait...why is Argon on your shoulder...? you guys loo-" His eyes suddenly go wide and he freezes, staring at the large man. the blades from Daniel's demi-gauntlet pierce his throat, causing him to cough out a black liquid with the consistency of blood.

Daniel swings his arm to the side, ripping open his throat. His blades coated with the vlack blood of the devil. The devil coughs out a fountain of blood and falls over.

Daniel continues to walk towards the forest, disappearing through the trees.

 **AAHHHH! SORRY THIS TOOK FOREVER! Between work and school! I've been busy so I can't like edit as fast as I use to! So...chapters may take a bit longer! Sorry guys! But here's the newest one I hope you all enjoy!**


	23. Chapter 23: A Fight Between Friends

Morning comes and Henry groans, sitting up. He is feeling better. He starts looking around for Argon but his eyes suddenly go wide. "AAAHHHHHHHH!" He screams.

"AHHH!" Alfred and Ludwig sit up, screaming and looking around.

"SACRE BLEU?!" Francis sits up, gasping and looking around.

Mara groans, sitting up, very annoyed with all the yelling and screaming.

Henry got up, frantically looking under rocks and behind rocks. "Where is he?!"

Alfred whines, rubbing his eyes. "Duuuuude what the hell...? It's barely day break...what are you looking for?" He mumbles and yawns.

"ARGON!" Henry grips his hair. "He's not here! Where did he go?! He never goes anywhere without me!"

"Argon...? Maybe he went to the bathroom..." Alfred lies back down. "Man I'm surprised you didn't wake up Daniel." He laughs.

Francis looks over and blinks. "...er...Daniel's gone."

"WHAT?!" Alfred, Henry, and Ludwig say together.

Gilbert groans loudly, rubbing his throat. "Yep. Argon and Daniel are gone. Left like in the middle of the night..."

"Gilbert! Are you alright?!" Henry comes over. "Your throat is all bruised..."

"Yeah...Daniel stabbed me through the fucking throat then practically ripped it in half! It hurt like a bitch! I was gonna go after 'em, but it took longer than expected for the blood to stop. It's been awhile since I've been hurt..."

"Where did they go? Do you have any idea?" Mara asks.

"No...why would I? All I know is some weird music was coming from the forest...it was eerie and evil...so I'm sure they went somewhere in there..." He points towards the forest with his thumb.

She nods. "Well it's a good place to start."

Henry sniffles and wipes his eyes. "My poor Argon! Don't worry! I'll find you!" He waves his arms around. He runs out the cave and towards the forest.

"Hey! Dude! Wait up!" Alfred chases after him.

"Wait you two! You're going to get lost!" Francis chases after them.

Mara sighs and gives chase to make sure they don't get lost.

"Er...Gilbert, are you going to be alright?" Ludwig asks the devil.

He blinks and laughs. "Of course! I can't simply die from having my neck ripped open! Well, I can't die from any normal human means, so don't worry. Now hurry up before we lose sight of the others!" He runs out the cave. "Hey guys! Wait for me!"

Ludwig follows him.

~o~o~o~o~o~

Deep in the forest, Daniel and Argon stand infront of a figure hidden in the shadows.

"Aaahhh...perfect...these two beasts shall do perfectly. Now I want you both to go and end the lives of your companions! Do not fail me..."

Daniel and Argon slowly nod and turn to walk off to find the others. Argon spreads his wings and flies into the air. Fire surrounds his body and he grows to his large size. Daniel growls, fur sprouting from his skin, nails sharpening into claws, teeth elongating into sharp fangs. He howls loudly and runs off on all fours.

~o~o~o~o~o~

Henry stops and pants setting his hands on his knees. "Okay...! Need a break! Oh man, where could he have gone!" He whines.

"There he is!" Alfred says, running up to the sulking man. "Dude you can't just go off running like that."

Everyone soon catches up. Mara sighs. "Please refrain from running off like that. You could have gotten lost you know."

"I don't care. I just want my Argon back!" He continues to whines.

Suddenly a dark shadow covers the group.

Francis slowly looks up. "Well...I found Argon...but something tells me he's not happy to see us."

Argon swoops down and lands on the ground, glaring at the group, smoking coming out of his nostrils.

"Argon! Buddy! What's...uh...the matter...?" Argon inhales deeply and Henry gulps. "EVERYONE GET OUT OF THE WAY!" The dragon releases a stream of fire. Everyone dives out of the way of the flames.

"Geeze! What's gotten into that dragon?!" Gilbert sets his hand over his chest. "I saw my life flash before my eyes!"

"And you were bored?" Alfred asks.

"No! Well okay yeah...stop stealing my lines!" He shakes his fist at him.

"Don't we have more troubling concerns?!" Ludwig yells.

Then a loud howl gathers everyone's attention. Daniel steps through the bushes, in his wolf-beast form, glaring at the group. He growls and gets down on all fours then roars.

"Sacre Bleu! Well it seems we found both our missing friends. But, I don't think they're happy to see us." He chuckles and smiles. "Ah, Daniel...now you don't want to do this, you're going to get hurt."

Daniel growls and lunges at the doctor. Francis didn't think he would lunge at him so quickly and is taken by surprise. He falls over and curses, the large beast growling down at him. "A little help please!" He kicks the werewolf in the gut, making him yelp and open his jaws, ready to bite his head off. Before Francis could lose his head, Mara kicks Daniel in the head, sending him crashing into a tree.

"A little close don't you think?" Francis says, sitting up. "I didn't think he'd actually attack."

Mara stands next to him. "It's more like you let your guard down."

Francis purses his bottom lip. "You're so cold sometimes you know that?"

Argon growls and roars. He blows out smoke from his nostrils and Henry gulps a bit. "This isn't good guys...I think we need to split up..."

"Just so you guys know, their is an evil force controlling these two. They are still Daniel and Argon...so try not to kill either of 'em." Gilbert informs. "I can smell the evil mind controlling energy coming off of them both."

"I was just about to ask what was wrong with them. So thanks for that dude." Alfred chuckles lightly.

Henry whines and grips his hair. "My poor Argon!"

"Right, so who is taking who." Mara asks. "I shall take care of Daniel here."

Francis chuckles. "I'll take care of the big bad wolf as well~" He purrs softly.

Henry grins. "I'll take down Argon. I know just about everything about him!"

"So, Gilbert...who do you wanna help take on? Dragon or Daniel?"

Gilbert rubs his chin, looking between the two. "Dragon...Daniel...dragoooon...Daniel...drraaaaagoooon...Daniel." He hums softly in thought. "Yeah I'm going with the dragon, no contest."

"Dude same. I'd rather take on a dragon than deal with Daniel any day." Alfred laughs and grins. "Alright Henry! We are here to help!"

He gives a thumbs up. "I'm sure we can take him down if we work together!" While he looks at his two friends, Argon bites down on the back of his shirt and throws him up in the air and catches him with his mouth.

"GAH! HEY DON'T EAT HIM!" Alfred grips his hair and snaps his fingers. An explosion goes off in front Argon's face but he doesn't open his mouth.

Gilbert spreads his wings. "Don't worry, I got him!" He flies up and tries to pry open the dragon's mouth. Argon growls and shakes his head around, trying to shake him off. Gilbert curses under his breath and he slowly starts to pry open his mouth.

Henry pushes open his mouth With Gilbert and stands there, his hands on the roof of his dragon's mouth. "Okay...so being eaten by a dragon is NOT the way I wanna die..."

"Alfred! I could use a little help here! Do something!" Gilbert is barely holding open the mouth of the dragon who is shaking his head like crazy.

Alfred grins big. "Okay! But I doubt you're gonna like it!" He laughs loudly and snaps his fingers.

"Wait wha-AAHH!" Gilbert yells as an explosion fills the dragon's mouth sending Henry into Gilbert and they both come crashing to the ground smoking. Argon screeches loudly and spreads his wings, taking off into the sky.

"You dudes okay?" Alfred calls over to his friends as he runs over. "Sorry. Didn't think you'd go crashing to the ground like that. It was kinda funny though."

Gilbert sits up and glares at him. "You damn idiot! What were you thinking? You could have blown us to Smithereens you know!" He cracks his back and hisses softly.

"But you're fine! So you're welcome!" Alfred grins big and gives a thumbs up.

"What?! I am not thanking you for that!" He shakes his fist at him.

"But you're immortal and Henry is like impervious to fire, right? So it's all good my dude!" Alfred beams, feeling as though he did the right thing and didn't regret anything.

Henry groans a little bit and rubs his head as he sits. "Remind me to get out on my own next time..."

~o~o~o~o~o~

Francis kicks Daniel under his jaw, making him stumble back. Mara drops down and wraps her legs around his neck and holds her hands over his head. "Shadow Shot!" She shoots two balls of shadowy energy at him. She jumps off once they hit and Daniel falls over.

Ludwig smiles. "You did it!" He cheers.

Francis chuckles. "I wish. Daniel is much to stubborn and strong to go down this easily, sadly. It's only gonna make him more pissed. Which isn't one bit good."

Daniel shakes his head and growls. He stands up and gets on all fours. He snarls and lunges at Mara. She gets ready to defend, but he lands behind her then raises his large claws.

"Mara watch out!" Francis says, running up and jumping over her, aiming a kick to the canine's snout.

"Francis wait!" Mara spins around, but it's to late. She knew this was just a deploy. He is actually after Francis.

Daniel grabs his foot with his clawed hand and swings him up then slams him on the ground. Francis hisses and groans a little bit. Mara tries to help him but Daniel knocks her back into a tree with a powerful swing of his arm. She grits her teeth, the impact nearly breaking the tree in half.

He howls loudly and holds down Francis by his wrists. He opens his mouth wide, ready to bite his head off. The man struggles under him, trying to break free. Suddenly a rock hits on him on the head. He shakes his head and growls. Another one hits him, then another, then one more. He snarls and turns his attention to Ludwig who is the one throwing them.

"Hey! You overgrown dog! Over here! I bet you can't catch me!" He throws another rock at him and runs deeper into the forest. Daniel growls and scratches his foot on the ground and bounds off after him, howling loudly.

Francis groans and sits up. "Mara! We have to go!"

"Yes I'm aware." She pulls Francis up to his feet. "He made a distraction so we could recover. But now we have to hurry before Daniel catches him."

He chuckles. "Oui~ We can't have him tear poor Ludwig to shreds~" He winks and they both chase after Daniel into the woods.

Ludwig curses to himself as he looks back and sees the werewolf chasing him. "Okay maybe this wasn't a great idea after all!" He picks up the speed and focuses on not tripping on anything.

Daniel growls and darts off into a different direction to try and cut him off.

~o~o~o~o~o~

"Alright Gilbert! Once I'm over him, drop me."

Gilbert holds Henry under his arms as he flies over the dragon. He let's go and Henry takes out his hammer. "Sorry Argon. But you've been a bad dragon!" He swings it down, hitting the dragon on the head with the hammer part. Argon's eyes go wide and he lands on the ground. Henry stands on his head and grins big. He jumps off and lands on the ground. The dragon opens his mouth and releases a stream of fire at him.

Henry inhales deeply, the spikes on his collar glowing red. He releases a stream of fire at him. Both attacks hit one another and stay at a stalemate. Henry glances back at Gilbert and nods a bit.

He cackles and he spreads his wings. He takes off into the air and smirks, holding out his hands, black flames surrounding them. "I'll show you some REAL fire~!" He laughs loudly shoots two blasts of black fire at the dragon. Argon hisses and stops his fire-breath as he stumbles back and shakes his head. The flames soon cover his whole body then erupt into a column of black fire, intensifying greatly. Argon roars in pain and the flames vanish. He falls over, patches of black covering his body.

"Whoa...your Hell Fire did some major damage...he sure has a lot of burns. Super glad you're on our side." Henry chuckles and gives a thumbs up.

Gilbert cackles and lands in front of him. "Danke~ But I doubt that's going to be enough to keep this guy down. You ready Alfred!" Gilbert looks over at the blonde who gives a thumbs up and grins.

"Oh yeah dude! I'm ready!" He runs up to the down dragon and presses his hands on multiple spots on his stomach as he tries to recover. "Henry once told me a dragon's weak spot is their belly." Soon a bunch of red flame symbols are on his stomach. "Alright! All set!" He runs back as soon as the dragon gets back on his feet and growls. "Alright guys! I've got three minutes before they disappear! So it has to be our final attack!"

"RIGHT!" Henry and Gilbert say at the same time.

~o~o~o~o~o~

Ludwig stops and pants heavily, looking back. "D-did I...lose...him..?" Soon he hears a snap and Daniel jumps through the bushes and tackles him to the ground. Ludwig curses as he hits the ground. He winces and glares up at him. The werewolf grips his neck with his large hand and holds him up. Ludwig grips his wrist and kicks his feet, trying to get out of his grip. "Le-let go...!" He wheezes. Daniel spreads out the claws on his free hand, ready to slash open his stomach. Ludwig gulps, looking at his sharp claws. He closes his eyes.

Suddenly he hears a yelp and he falls to the ground with a small 'oof'.

"Now now Daniel, you've been a very bad doggy~" Francis is standing on the beast's head, grinning big. "Bonjour Ludwig~ We have come to save you!" He winks and smiles. He jumps off Daniel's head and lands in front of Ludwig.

Daniel stands up and growls. Suddenly a blast a shadow energy hits him from behind, making him yelp and stumble forward. Francis smiles and delivers a powerful kick to his chest, making him fall back.

Mara walks over to Ludwig. "Are you alright? Nothing hurt?"

Ludwig blinks and smiles a bit. "Nein. I'm fine. You got here just in time actually." He rubs his neck a bit.

Daniel groans and slowly gets up. He gets on all fours and shakes his head. He groans a little bit and snorts. He starts to circle the three, his tail swishing back and forth, staring at the three with a cold calculating look.

"Careful Francis...he could do anything..." Mara says, standing on front of Ludwig.

"I was just about to say the same thing to you." He chuckles, standing behind Ludwig. "Don't worry Ludwig we won't let him get you."

Daniel digs his claws into the dirt and lunges tackling down Mara to the ground. He knocks the wind out of her and then lunges at Francis knocking him over.

Ludwig blinks and stands up, watching them both be taken down so easily. Ludwig's eyes go wide as he sees the beast of a man charging at him. He tackles him to the ground. He then feels a searing pain going up his arm. He yells loudly and looks over to see Daniel sinking his fangs into his skin, blood oozing down from his arm. Daniel growls softly biting down harder, hitting bone with his large, sharp fangs. Ludwig yells louder and thrashes around. Daniel set one hands on his chest, holding him still.

"Daniel! Let him go!" Francis yells at him and charges forward. Daniel growls and let's him go and tackles down the doctor, sinking his teeth into his right leg. He shakes his head around, tearing into his skin and tearing apart his pant leg. He drags him around and the doctor grits his teeth, trying not to scream.

He let's go, some blood splattered around on his mouth. His once white fangs now tinted red. He slowly looks back to see Mara standing there, radiating a dark aura. He growls at her and charges forward.

Mara stands there. She watches the man charge forward like a wild animal and he lunges at him. She holds her hand out in front of her. She grabs his nose and in a blink of an eye, he's thrown like a rag doll, crashing through three, thick, oak trees.

Francis groans and sits up. "Mara! Be careful! We still need him alive!"

"He's not dead." She says simply.

From atop a high tree, the strange man looks between both fighting teams. "Mmm...they seem to be handling each other well...but I think it's time to go to the next step." He laughs loudly and disappears in a cloud of smoke.

 **SURPRISE! Two uploads in a week! This is the actual day I'm suppose to upload a chapter, so I hope you all enjoy this very much! This is one of my favorite little arcs! Plenty of action! So don't forget to review if you want! Enjoy!**


	24. Chapter 24:

Argon growls and glares at the three. Alfred chuckles and grins. "Alright guys. We got three minutes before my marks disappear, got it? So let's not delay this any further." He gets ready to snap his fingers but Argon swings his tail at the three of them, knocking them into a near by tree.

Henry groans. He falls off the tree and hits the ground. "Ow...forgot how thick and strong his tail is..."

Alfred hits the ground and coughs out a little blood. "Dude, I wasn't ready for that...okay...we gotta end this and soon."

Gilbert lands on his feet and rubs his head. "Right. I'll distract him." He spreads his wings and flies at the dragon. "HEY! You overgrown lizard! Watch me!" He sticks his tongue out at him.

Argon growls and lunges at the devil. He opens his mouth wide and snaps it shut.

Gilbert laughs, easily avoiding his snapping mouth. "To slow! Try again slowpoke!"

Argon roars and tries to catch the flying devil in his mouth.

Alfred slowly stands up and grins. "Alright...I think it's time to end this..." He gets ready to snap his fingers but Henry shoves him out of the way.

A stream of fire hits the ground where he was standing.

Alfred sighs in relief, setting his hand over his chest. "That was WAY to close."

Henry laughs nervously. "Yeah, I guess he doesn't want you to snap your fingers. So how much more time do we have?" He looks at Alfred.

Alfred rubs the back of his head. "We got two more minutes, so we better make this quick."

Gilbert lands next to his two friends. "Alright since we're running out of time, I say we make this quick. Henry, I'm going to need you to help me create a distraction."

Henry grins and salutes. "I thought you'd never ask! I'm here to help however I can." He chuckles lightly and winks.

"Great!" He spreads his wings and picks him up under his arms as he flies into the air. "Hey! Argon! Over here you overgrown lizard!"

Argon growls and releases a stream of fire at the two. Gilbert flies out of the way. Henry inhales and releases a stream of fire at Argon which hits him on the head. The dragon hisses and releases another stream of fire at the two. They keep up dodging and spitting fire at the dragon whose focus is on the two.

Alfred raises one hand in the air. "A minute and thirty seconds." He says before snapping his fingers. Half the marks on Argon's stomach glow and then begin to go off one after the other in a chain reaction.

The dragon screeches loudly. His eyes widen and he falls over with a thud, his belly smoking a bit.

Gilbert lands, setting Henry down. Henry frowns and puts his weapon away. "Argon...I'm sorry. Hey Alfred. I don't think we'll need the other half to go off. I think he's had enough."

Alfred smiles softly and nods. "Got it dude. Man am I glad that's over! That took a lot more time than I thought it would." He laughs and puts his hands behind his head.

Gilbert cackles and grins. "But we did it! Hopefully Daniel was put down too. I'd hate to have to deal with him." The devil shivers at the thought.

Alfred laughs and nods. "Yeah. He's a handful after all. I hope the other half of our team can handle him. Should we go help?"

Henry chuckles lightly. "I'm sure Mara and the others handled him already." He gives a thumbs up.

Alfred chuckles and falls down on his butt. "Man. I was worried. I thought we were going to be dead meat for awhile..."

Gilbert cackles loudly. "I knew we could do it!" He grins and crosses his arms.

Henry chuckles and watches Argon start to shrink to his small size. He walks over to him and crouches down. He looks sadly at him. "Sorry it had to be like this buddy. I didn't mean anything by any of this. We just needed to stop you is all."

Argon's eyes snap open and he lunges at Henry, the dragon's mouth open wide.

~o~o~o~o~o~

Daniel growls and glares at Mara, his head bleeding and some blood dripping from his side. He charges at her once more.

She grabs him by the nose slams him onto the ground. She then slams her foot on his neck, pinning him down on his back.

He yelps a bit and tries to get out from under her, but he is stuck. He groans and barks softly, admitting he can't escape.

"I really didn't want to hurt you Daniel. But it seems you didn't leave me any choice. But I'm sure you'll be fine in the long run." Mara looks down at the growling wolf-man.

Daniel growls and glares up at her. He tries getting her foot off of her once more, but he can't.

"Well well well. It looks like things aren't according to my plan..." A coarse, raspy, voice says.

Ludwig looks around as he helps up Francis. "Who said that?!"

Francis groans a little bit. "Probably the person behind all of this..."

"He is correct." Suddenly standing a few feet away was the man behind all of this. He's wearing a bull skull over his head like a mask, his face hidden. He's also wearing a leather vest along with a pair of cloth pants. His skin is discolored like that of a corpse. "I am the one who is controlling your friends here."

Mara glares at him. "So you're the one behind all of this. Release them both from your control. Now." She demands.

"I don't take orders from the likes of you. Though I have to say, you may have taken down the wolf-man, but the main event is set to start very soon." He chuckles lightly.

"What are you talking about?" Francis asks, raising a brow.

"I am known as the Beast Master. I am able to control all manner of beasts. I didn't think the wolf-man and dragon would be enough to take you all down, but I know one thing that can help me. If I am correct, the beast of yours shall soon be under my control." He disappears and laughs loudly.

"What...?" Ludwig furrows his brows and tilts his head. "What is he talking about?"

Mara furrows her brows before the sudden realization hits and her eyes go wide. "We have to go back and help Henry, Gilbert, and Alfred NOW before it's to late."

Francis blinks a few times. "That would be nice, but." He points to Daniel. "What are we going to do about him?"

Mara looks down at him and sighs. "I suppose knocking him out would be the best option."

"You will have to hit him pretty hard." Ludwig says, looking at the growling beast.

Francis grins big. "Not exactly~ I happen to have a very powerful tranquilizer. It helps when he gets to wild." He reaches into his coat.

Daniel snarls and takes in a deep breath.

Mara hears his sharp intake of air. "Quick! Cover your ears! NOW!" She warms and puts her hands over her ears.

Francis and Ludwig do the same.

Daniel let's out a deafening roar that spreads through the forest. Animals near by drop dead as blood flows from their ears.

Mara stumbles back and narrows her eyes.

Daniel stops and gets on all fours. He takes a few deep breathes.

Ludwig uncovers his ears that begin to ring. He stumbles around a little bit. His head feels dizzy and he's having a hard time staying on his feet. He jumps as a bird falls in front of him, bleeding from the ears. He gulps.

Francis hisses and sticks his finger in his ear. "Mon deiu. I hate it when he does that. Ludwig, are you alright?" He looks over at the boy who falls on his butt. "The ringing and dizziness will go away. You aren't use to it like we are." He smiles apologetically. "I am worried about. She did take the brunt of his attack."

Mara tries keeping her balance, but her legs begin to shake.

Daniel wags his tail and lunges at her. He tackles her down to the ground and pins her. He raises a clawed hand and stretches out his fingers.

Before he can slash out her throat, Francis delivers a powerful kick to his side, sending him hitting the ground and bouncing a few times before he rolls to a stop. He soon hisses and falls to one knee. "Merde...that hurt a lot more than I was expecting."

"Francis." Mara sits up. "You idiot, you're still injured. You're only going to further agitate your injury."

The doctor chuckles. "I am aware, mon ami. I am a doctor after all." He winks and stands up. "But it was the only thing I could think of doing."

Mara stands up and rubs her head. "Do you have the shot?"

Francis grins and holds up the syringe. "But of course~" He purrs. "i just need to get close to him. It'll still take a good few seconds before he passes out."

"Then we have to get it in him as fast as we can." Mara states, staring at the groaning beast.

"Are you going to be alright?" Francis glances at her. "Ears still ringing?"

"Only slightly, but I can at least stand without shaking." She glances at him.

Daniel growls and stands on all fours. He coughs out a little blood and digs his claws into the dirt and runs at them both.

Mara holds out her hand. A black shadowy energy forms around her hand. She fires the ball of energy at him.

Daniel jumps up, a second before it hits him.

Francis grins. "Bonjour~" He is next to him in the air. He spins around and slams the heel of his boot into his back, sending him crashing into the ground. He lands on his back and injects him with the syringe on the back of his neck.

Daniel bucks him off his back and growls. He whimpers softly and stands up on his hind legs and cracks his back. He roars and pants heavily.

Francis lands on his rear when Daniel bucks him off and smiles. "Any second now."

Mara takes three steps back and crosses her arms.

Daniel snarls, getting down on all fours and charging at her.

"Three. Two. One." Francis counts down.

Daniel then starts to lose speed and his eyelids become heavy. He stops and rears up on his hind legs before giving a weak roar and falling forward, hitting the ground with a thud and starting to snore.

~o~o~o~o~o~

"Aaaahhhhh!" Henry stumbles around, trying to pull Argon off his bottom lip by pulling on his tail. The small dragon growls as he continues to latch on with his mouth. "GUYS GET HIM OFF ME! COME ON HELP!"

Alfred is laughing his ass off, holding his gut as he was doubled over. "HAHAHA! DUDE! HE'S LIKE A LIZARD! PULL HIM OFF!" He laughs harder and falls on his knees.

Gilbert tilts his head a bit. "Come on Henry! You can handle this! Just tickle him or something!"

Henry let's go of his tail and tries to gently open Argon's mouth so he can pull him off. He rubs him under the chin, making him loosen his grip enough for Henry to pull off. He holds him out at arms length. "Ahhh! Man his small teeth hurt..." He licks his slightly bleeding lip and groans a little. Argon thrashes around as Henry holds him in a fist. He hisses and growls. "Come on Argon, don't be like this..."

Alfred walks over and chuckles. "Man he's a feisty little guy, that's for sure." He pokes him, causing Argon to hiss and chomp down on his finger. "AAAHHHH!" Henry let's go of him as Alfred tries to shake him off his finger. "LET GO LET GO LET GO LET GO!"

"Told ya his teeth hurt!" Henry smiles smugly and crosses his arms.

Argon growls as he keeps his grip on his finger. "Come on! Dude why are his teeth so sharp?!" He tries pulling him off.

Argon let's go and spreads his wings. He takes flight and flies straight for Henry, landing on his face.

Henry blinks a few times. "Uh...hello...?" Argon begins to crawl into his mouth and Henry's eyes go wide. He grips his tail and pulls him out. "Whoa! No!"

Argon scratches his hand, making him let go. He flies into his mouth once more, his tail sticking out his mouth.

Henry tries pulling him out, but he grips his teeth. "Guys! Help!"

Alfred tilts his head. "What is he trying to do...?"

Henry manages to pull him out and tosses him to Gilbert who catches him. "He's trying to crawl into my mouth and make me swallow him! And you know what happens after that?"

"You turn all big and bad?" Gilbert says, tilting his head.

"Yeeessss. While Argon is under someone elses control, the chance I will be in control is nearly nonexistent! So you know what that means?"

"...so whoever is doing this...will have...a huge dragonoid under...their...control..." Alfred gulps and pulls on the collar of his shirt.

"Yep." Henry nods. "So see how important this is?"

"..." Gilbert looks down at Argon who growls and releases a stream of fire at his face. He yells and drops him, stumbling back, his face burning. "DAMN IT! THAT LITTLE-" He covers his face with both his hands.

"I got him!" Alfred dives to the ground to catch him. But he flies up and lands on Henry's face once more.

Henry yells and stumbles back. He grabs Argon and pulls him out of his mouth once more. "Gah! No! Stop that already! Argon snap out of it already!" The small dragon hisses and growls. He bites his hand, making Henry flinches but keep hold of him. "Argon...come on...snap out of it...I know you can fight it...! It's me! Henry! We've been friends for over ten years now! You have to fight it!"

Argon growls and stops biting his hand and shakes his head, groaning a little bit. He whines and growls, closing his eyes tight. Henry holds him out in his hands. Argon curls up and growls, rolling on his back and growling. He is trying to fight the evil force controlling him but it is hard. He soon lies down and looks up at Henry with a sad expression on his face.

Henry smiles lightly.

Argon smiles a bit at him and wags his tail.

Henry opens his mouth to say something, but suddenly Argon flies straight into his mouth and Henry gasps, accidentally swallowing him. He grips his neck, his eyes going wide. "Uh oh..."

"Henry!" Gilbert and Alfred both yell.

Gilbert opens Henry's mouth and looks inside. "Damn it! This isn't good!"

Henry groans and falls on his knees, gripping his throat. "I-I wo-won't...! Le-let...him...!" He groans loudly and shuts his eyes. "Can hear...his voice...damn it...!" Henry throws up and falls over on his side, curling up. "So-sorry..." He looks at his friends one last time with an apologetic look in his eyes.

Mara comes running in on the scene with Ludwig and Francis. "Oh no...we're to late..."

Henry's chest begins to glow and fire soon consumes his body. Soon a large shadow is cast over them and a portion of the forest. The ground shakes as heavy feet hit the ground. Standing there in his massive dragonoid form, Herny snort's out a puff of smoke.

Alfred gulps and looks up. "Uh oh...this isn't good..."

Gilbert groans loudly. "This is the furthest thing from good as we can get."

Mara nods. "He's right...I was afraid this was going to happen..."

A loud laughter echos around them. Then suddenly, the Beast Master appears in front of them. "Perfect! Such a large beast under my control. I am sure he will easily crush all of you with one mighty stomp."

Alfred rubs the back of his head. "So. How are we going to deal with this?"

"We better think of something quick." Francis rubs the back of his head.

"Uuugggghhh! Why does everything hurt?!" Walking out of the bushes, Daniel rubs his head.

"Hey! Daniel's back to normal!" Alfred smiles. "One less problem to worry about."

"What happened? I feel like I've been kicked around like a rag doll." He cracks his back.

"I'll fill you in later." Mara says. "We have much bigger problems."

Daniel blinks then slowly looks up. "Oh, damn it..."

"With this behemoth at my command I have no need for the other one. Now prepare to die!" He whistles and Henry reaches down and picks him up. He sets him on the top of his head. He lifts up his foot high over the group.

"What are we going to do!? We have to run! Before it's to late!" Ludwig yells at everyone who is just standing there for some odd reason. "We're going to get crushed!"

Francis chuckles. "Don't worry mon ami. We have everything handled." He winks.

Gilbert cracks his neck and stretches. "Alright. So I'm guessing I have permission to go all out, right?" He glances at Mara.

"Yes. But remember he's still our comrade so don't kill him." She crosses her arms.

Gilbert smirks and laughs. "Alright. Don't worry, I'll just beat him into submission." His eyes glow red and a black aura starts to leak out from his body. He cracks his knuckles.

Henry brings his foot down to stomp on the group, but something stops it and throws it back, making him stumble back. "What?!" The Beast Master says, narrowing his eyes as a large shadowy mass forms in front of them. Henry narrows his eyes and reaches back, grabbing his war hammer.

"Hope you didn't think Henry here was the only one able to turn into a big hulking beast." A deep, sinister, demonic voice comes from the shadow and a pair of piercing glowing red eyes snap open. "Kesesese~"

 **DUN DUN DUN! Yes! Another battle of giant beasts is soon to come! I hope you all enjoy this new chapter, because I thought it was cool. Next one shall be even MORE action packed! Wooo!**


	25. Chapter 25

"Kesese~" From the shadow, a form begins to take shape. "Did you honestly think Henry was the only one who can transform and grow?" The shadowy aura disappears. Standing there, the same height as Henry is Gilbert but his head is that of the skull of a bull with a mane of black fur around his neck. His upper body is thick with muscle and skin red. His hands have sharp claws with black fur coming from his wrists and going up halfway to his fingers. His lower body is covered with black fur and he has hooves like a goat. A long tail with a ball with sharp spikes coming out can be seen. His eyes are simply large glowing red dots in his eye-holes. "I can do that too."

The Beast Master glares at him. "I am the Beast Master! I should be able to control all manner of beast!" He takes out his flute.

Gilbert begins to laugh loudly. "Beast? I am a devil! A creature from hell! This is my true form, idiot!" He spins around and swings his tail. It hits Henry right on the side of the head, making him stumble a bit. "Sorry to do this, but it seems I don't have a choice."

Ludwig's eyes stare up at Gilbert, wide. "Wha-what...?"

Francis chuckles. "It's been a long time since I've seen Gilbert like that...it's still as intimidating as ever."

Daniel groans. "Isn't it dangerous having him like this? Last time you let him do this-"

"It's fine." Mara cuts in immediately. "It's the only chance we have. If something goes wrong, I'll handle it." Mara crosses her arms.

Daniel sighs heavily and rubs his head. "Well if you think it's our only choice...then fine."

The Beast Master narrows his eyes and chuckles lightly. "You may be big and scary, but you're still no match for me! Kill him! I will handle the others!" He jumps off from his head.

Henry takes out his war hammer and glares at him. He swings it down towards his head. Gilbert jumps back avoiding the hammer. The ground shakes and the group down on the ground try to stay standing up. Gilbert glances down at them and growls.

"Why don't we take this somewhere more remote!" Suddenly, black leather wings sprout from his back and spread out. He flies straight at Henry, hooking his arms under his and carries him off.

The Beast Master lands on the ground. His legs shake a little bit and he sways from side to side. "Now that the two giants are gone...I can get rid of all of you once more. Seems I'll be needing that canine after all." He takes out his flute and begins to play.

Daniel blinks and he covers his ears. "Damn it! Come on! Not again!" He growls and begins to shift, fur sprouting from his skin, his nails growing.

"Sacre Bleu...we have to go through this again...?" Francis groans. "He was enough trouble the first time..."

"Oh man...this isn't good." Alfred sighs a bit. "Alright. I guess I can take him on...?" He puts up his fists. "I thought fighting Argon meant I didn't have to fight Daniel!"

Daniel howls loudly, now fully in his werewolf form. He growls and stands protectively in front of the strange enemy. He roars and looks at the four, daring them to come forward.

The man chuckles lightly. "I am able to control all manner of beasts! When Shifters done those belts, they allow their minds to take on the beast mentality! Making their minds able to think like both humans and animals. An advantage, but also allows me to take control of the beast side of their mind. Now attack!"

He roars loudly then gets down on all fours. He scratches his foot on the ground.

"Alright. If I have to go through him once more." She holds out her hand and her sword forms. She grips the handle and holds her sword out in front of her.

"Oh no, I'll handle you myself!" Before Mara knows it, he lunges forward. She holds up her sword and blocks his blade. "I'm sure he can finish off the three of them."

"Don't underestimate my team." She glares at him.

Daniel lunges at Francis who is still leaning against Ludwig. Francis chuckles lightly and pushes Ludwig and roundhouse kicks Daniel in the head, sending him crashing into a tree.

"Now it's not nice attacking someone with a broken leg." He managed to bandage his leg earlier. "That kick hurt, but it was worth it." He winks and smiles.

~o~o~o~o~o~

Gilbert drops Henry on the ground then flies up in the air.

Henry lands on his feet and shakes his head. He snorts out a puff of smoke.

Gilbert lands on the ground and laughs. "This is going to be a lot of fun~ That's for sure~" He cackles and cracks his knuckles.

Henry growls and inhales deeply then releases a stream of fire at the devil.

Gilbert stands in his spot and spreads out his arms. He takes the hit. He laughs and smirks. "Fire won't work on me. You'd know that if you weren't being controlled. I won't be going easy on you." He holds out his hand to the side and black flames form on his hand and begin to morph and change shape. It forms a black battle axe with silver blades. "Haven't used this in awhile. Lucifer's Hatchet."

Henry swings his hammer towards Gilbert. Gilbert blocks it with the handle of his axe. He pushes him back and slams the end of his weapon into Henry's stomach, making the air leave out of his lungs. Henry holds his stomach with his arms and growls. While crouching over, he snorts and charges at him, ramming his nose horn into the devil's stomach. Gilbert clenches his jaw. Henry pulls it out and then swings his war hammer, hitting Gilbert on the side of the skull. The demon stumbles to the side and shakes his head.

"Damn it...I can't use the blades of my axe on him...I don't want to seriously hurt him...he's still my friend..." He then gets an idea and grins. He spins his axe around and slams down the side of the axe on top of Henry's head. He laughs and watches as Henry stumbles around, holding his head. "I may not be able to cut you, but I can at least smack you around with it!"

Henry shakes his head and spins his hammer around. He swings it up and slams it down on Gilbert's head while he is laughing. The devil grits his teeth and holds his head. He growls and swings around, slamming his tail into the side of his head. The dragon stumbles over to the side and shakes his head. He growls and switches sides now using the axe side of his weapon. He swings from the side, ready to slash his side. Gilbert blocks the sharp axe with the handle of his battle axe. Henry Takes a step back and throws his weapon in the air. Gilbert blinks and watches as it flips in the air as it goes up and up. Henry takes this chance to wind up his fist and slams it into Gilbert's gut, making the air in the devil's lung come out. His legs shake and he drops his weapon, falling on his knees and holds his gut. Henry holds out his hand, catching his weapon as it falls back towards the ground. He swings up and slams it down the hammer on his head with such force it causes the ground to shake and crack under the both of them.

Gilbert groans a little bit. He slowly stands up and picks up his weapon. He shakes his head and the top of his skull cracks a bit. Gilbert's eyes glow more intense for a second. He stares at the dragon creature. He stabs the handle of his weapon partially into the ground. He clenches his fists, black flames forming around them. He digs his hooves into the ground and lunges forward. He rears back a fist and swings it full force forward.

Henry's guard raises and he grips his weapon tight, ready to block with it.

Gilbert's fist stops right in front of Henry's face. The devil smirks and opens his hand, releasing an intense blast of fire right into his opponents face.

Henry yells and drops his weapon. He stumbles back and hits his face trying to put out the fire on his face.

He swings around once more, hitting his head with his tail making him fall over. Gilbert lifts up his axe high over his head, ready to swing down on his neck. He swings down with the force he can muster, but suddenly stops. The sharp blade mere inches from his neck. He pants heavily. He tries gathering his thoughts and he takes a few steps back.

"Damn it...I almost killed them...they're both my friends...come on Gilbert, you're not a monster...remember that..." He pokes him a few times with the bottom of his weapon.

Henry's eyes snap open he slowly stands up once more. He glares at him and grips his weapon. Gilbert swings his weapon, slamming the side of it into the side of Henry's head, making him stumble to the side. Gilbert then slams the bottom of the handle of his weapon in his gut, making him double over and drop his weapon.

"Sorry! But you need to go down!" Gilbert rears his foot back and kicks him under his chin, sending him up.

Henry's feet leave the ground and he lands on his back on the ground with a loud crash. He coughs out some blood.

Gilbert slowly walks over to him and stands next to him, leaning down a bit.

He then gets a face full of fire. Gilbert didn't move or flinch. "You're really determined...that guy has seriously got your mind in a fog. Fire doesn't work on me." He takes a few steps back, watching as Henry slowly tries to push himself up.

He coughs out some more blood and grits his teeth as he stands. He shakily holds his weapons in hand and pants heavily as he glares at him.

Gilbert looks at him with a bit of empathy and sighs. "it really hurts seeing you like this you know. But I can't have you roaming around and trying to kill our friends. Hope you'll forgive me." Gilbert sighs and walks over to him.

Henry grips his weapon tightly and growls. He can't muster the strength to lift up his weapon now.

He sets his finger on his nose horn and gently pushes on it."So just stay down, okay buddy?" He smiles and cackles.

Henry falls over like a ton of bricks. He crashes on his back and groans. He glows and begins to shrink until he is normal once more. He coughs out Argon onto his chest before passing out. Argon lies down on his chest, passed out as well.

Gilbert shrinks down and turns back to his much smaller and more human-like form. His weapon disappears. He flies over and sits down next to him. Both Henry and Argon have bleeding heads, bruised stomachs, light burn marks on their face, and a little blood trailing down from their noses.

The devil sighs and leans back on his hands, sympathy swimming in his eyes. "I'm sorry guys...I had to do what I had to do."

~o~o~o~o~o~

Daniel yelps as he is blown back once more by Alfred's explosion. He slides back on all fours and shakes his head. He charges forward once more.

"Man I swear he's even more stubborn than he normally is!" Alfred takes half a step back. "I dunno if I can continue this! My hands are starting to cramp up!"

Francis stands in front of him. "Don't worry. We just have to keep him busy so Mara can take down the man controlling him. I'm sure we can do that." He raises his good leg and kicks the werewolf in the side of the head, sending him head first into a tree.

It cracks and Daniel hits the ground.

Alfred sighs and rubs his head. "I just hope she can take care of him soon. Because I don't know if we can handle Daniel for to long. We're not in top condition right now."

Francis sets his hands on his knees and pants softly. "Oui...you aren't wrong...but he's not in any better condition than we are. So let's try our best!"

Daniel groans softly as he slowly gets up. He shakes his head and growls a bit. He glares at the two and slowly walks up to them. He then begins to sprint. Then he charges, roaring loudly.

Alfred raises his hand, ready to snap his fingers, but he yells when Daniel tackles him to the ground. The werewolf bites down on his arm, making Alfred yell and clench his fist. He didn't bite down hard enough to break bone, but it hurt like hell.

"Alfred!" Francis jumps on Daniel's back and kicks his sides, making him let go and yelp. He jumps off his back.

Alfred snaps his fingers, sending the beast flying back and hitting the ground, sliding back. "Damn it...!" He hisses his cradles his arm to his body. "That hurt like hell...!"

"Are you alright? Let me look at it!" Francis hurries over and examines his bloody arm. "Luckily, it's not broken...but he did bite you pretty good. I don't think you'll be using that arm much anytime soon..." He takes out some bandages and begins to wrap it. "This will have to do for now. I would suggest trying not to move it to much."

Daniel pants heavily and growls. He groans softly and his limbs begin to shake. He slowly stands up and inhales deeply.

"Alfred! Cover your ears!" Francis warns before covering his.

Alfred blinks a few times and nods before covering his ears.

Daniel let's out his ear deafening roar once more.

Alfred grits his teeth a bit. "Damn it...! I hate it when he uses this move. i hate it more when we're the targets of it."

Francis nods. "Oui, this is the second time today I've had to deal with it."

Daniel pants heavily and whimpers a bit, his tongue hanging out of his mouth. He desperately tries to catch his breath.

Francis sighs and uncovers his ears. "Thankfully he can only manage doing this twice in one day. It causes his lungs great stress after all. Alfred!"

He grins big. "You got it!" He snaps his fingers.

Daniel yelps as an explosion goes off under him, making him spin in the air. He hits the ground head first and groans.

Francis sighs. "I think that should do it."

Alfred sighs heavily. "Finally! Man, that was super tedious..."

Daniel pants heavily and coughs out blood. He tries standing up, but falls over with a yelp. He passes out on the ground, then turns back to normal. He coughs out blood, bleeding from his head, mouth, nose, not to mention the cuts and burns over his body.

Francis and Alfred sigh in relief and sit down, leaning against one another, back to back.

"Man am I glad that's over..." Alfred chuckles lightly and smiles.

Francis smiles and nods. "Oui...I am too..."

Alfred smiles and closes his eyes. "I seriously need a long break from fighting after this."

Francis chuckles softly and nods. "Oui. Me and you both."

~o~o~o~o~o~

Blade and sword collide once more. "You're not winning this little missy. You have no idea what I am!"

Mara jumps back and narrows her eyes. "Well...I may not know what you are, but I can assure you I know you're not human...so no simple weapon can kill you."

He laughs loudly. "You're a smart little girl...to bad this is your end." He holds up his knife and lunges forward.

Mara simply hold up his hand, her palm facing him. She then clenches it into a fist and darkness suddenly surrounds him and she disappears.

He blinks and looks around. It is dark. He couldn't see anything around him. He narrows his eyes and slowly takes a few steps around. "You can't hide from me! You're not getting away from me so easily!"

"I understand why you have to control wild beasts." Her voice echos all around him.

He spins around and growls. He grips his knife. "Where are you?!"

"You're not very strong yourself. So you need others to fight your battles for you. You control beasts for your lack of strength and cunning."

"You have no idea what you're talking about! Now show yourself! I can fight my own battles well enough!" He growls lowly. He gasps as something sharp cuts his side. "W-what?!"

"You say ordinary weapons can not harm you. I don't use ordinary weapons."

"What?!" He growls and spikes made up of solid darkness pierce him throughout his body, making his eyes go wide. "Damn...it...!"

The orb of darkness disappears and Mara stands a few feet away from The Beast Master who still has the spikes running through him.

He coughs out a thick black ooze. "You...think this...is over...ha...! You...will all meet...your end...soon." He slowly turns to dust and blows away.

Mara glances back. "We can handle anything."

Daniel and Argon gasp as a cloud of smoke rises out of their mouths.

 **Hello all! And that is the end of this little arc! I hope you all enjoyed this very much! Don't forget to review, follow, etc, share with your friends if you want! Until next time~**


	26. Chapter 26:City Adventure!

Daniel slowly opens his eyes and hisses. "W-what happened...?" He groans a little and tries to sit up. "Damn it!" he almost immediately lies back down, bandages wrapping around him from head to toe.

"Daniel!" Francis smiles and walks over to him. "You're awake. Try not to move to much. You're still injured." They currently reside inside a cave so they can rest.

Henry groans a little bit, slowly opening his eyes. "W-what...happened...? Oh man...the last thing I remember was...Argon getting in..." Henry also has bandages wrapping around most of his body

"Hey! You're alright!" Gilbert grins down at him and his tail wags back and forth.

Henry chuckles and rubs his head a bit. "Yeah...what happened after Argon went into my mouth...?"

"Well...you went all big and dragon like usual...I had to go all big and bad and stop you." He looks to the side and rubs the back of his head.

Henry blinks a few times and chuckles. "Whoa...I'm lucky that I'm still alive!" He laughs.

Gilbert chuckles softly. "Yeah...but you're alright...I'm glad."

Francis sighs and sits down. "Mon deiu...I think we deserve a nice long rest..."

"You're not kidding." Alfred laughs and rubs the back of his head, leaning against the cave wall. "Man we've been in some tough fights recently with little to no rest..." He runs his fingers through his hair. "I think I need a nice long bath and like a week long nap."

"I agree with that. Tomorrow we are finding a nice town where we can hopefully relax." Mara says.

"Yeah...!" Everyone says tiredly.

"Alright, everyone get some rest." Mara demands.

She didn't need to say that twice as everyone sighs in relief. Alfred, Francis, and Gilbert fall over and begin to groan loudly. Daniel goes back to sleep and Henry smiles as he rubs Argon under the chin, making him purr.

Ludwig sits down next to her. "They fight really hard...its amazing to see..."

She nods. "If they weren't capable fighters they would have died long ago. But I knew they were capable when I assembled them."

"Right...they may not look it, but...they can be quite scary...I can see how you all have killed so many people..." Ludwig rubs his head.

"You should get some rest. We are heading out in the morning. Given it will be a rather relaxing day, you are injured and need rest." She glances at him.

He sighs and nods. "Alright...if you say so." He goes over to the soft moss he gathered to sleep on and lies down. He didn't realize how tired he was until he closed his eyes and falls asleep rather quickly.

Mara stays awake a bit longer, watching over the group before she soon closes her own eyes and rests.

The next morning the group gets up and gets on Argon so they can fly towards a close city. They soon land on the outskirts and Argon shrinks down and crawls on Henry's head and curls up, falling asleep.

Daniel groans and rubs his eyes. "Can I find a place to go to sleep...? I'm still tired..."

"I don't think any amount of sleep will make you not be tired." Alfred laughs and puts his hands behind his head, grinning big.

Daniel growls and glares at him. "Shut up! I wasn't talking to you!"

"Now now you two. No need to start fighting. We're all friends here, oui?" He smiles between the two. "Why don't you two hug and we can work through this?" He smiles.

"I don't think hugging is gonna help Mr. Grumpy here. If anyone it will make him even more grumpy." Alfred pouts.

Daniel growls and grits his teeth. "Are you looking to have your head bitten off?!"

Gilbert rolls his eyes. "You guys are still a bunch of immature brats."

"Who the hell are you to talk?" Daniel raises a brow. "I will bite off your head ya bastard..."

Mara rubs her temples and sighs heavily. "Will you all shut up? Please? We aren't even in the city yet...when we get inside, feel free to go off and do whatever you wish...but we meet back here tomorrow morning, understood?"

"Yes ma'am!" They all say and salute.

Gilbert snaps his fingers and hides his horns, wings, and tail. "Guess I should try to look a little normal.

They all walk to the city. It was large, with a big stone wall surrounding it and large wooden gates letting people in and out. Guards protect the gates and decide who enters and sometimes who leaves.

They walk up to the north side gate.

"Halt!" One guard says to the group.

"What business do you have here?" The other asks.

Mara steps up. "We are just a group of travelers looking for a place to rest and relax."

The two guards look at each other at the group, then at each other. They nod and knock on the wooden gate at the same time. the gate slowly open. The group walks through the gate. The city is quite large, many buildings, plenty of people wondering around and stands for shopping.

"Alright...as i said...we meet back at our arrival point tomorrow morning." She turns around to address the group, but the only one there is Ludwig. She sighs heavily and rubs her temples. "Of course...feel free to go on and do your own thing as well Ludwig."

Ludwig nods. "Thank you." He goes off as well.

Mara sighs a bit and starts to walk. What shall she do today? She wasn't quite sure to be honest. But a nice quiet day alone sounds nice...

As she walks through the crowd of people, a few trying to sell her things, though she wasn't paying attention to them at all. She holds her hands behind her back, her thoughts trying to figure out everything that has happened to them so far. From Ludwig trying to assemble the Shadow Soldiers, to the Divine Knights after them, to this prophecy business that she's still trying to figure out. She is giving herself a headache.

She glances over and sees a man selling books. She perks up a little bit and walks over. She looks over the different array of book titles and rubs her chin in thought.

The old man smiles softly and chuckles. "See anything you like young lady? It's nice to see someone interested in my book collection. Please, pick anything you like."

She hums softly and looks over the books. She stops and picks up a red book. "The Great War of X934..."

"Aahhh, my personal favorite. Can you believe it's been ten years since that war ended?" He chuckles lightly. "Thanks to our army generals strategies, king's leadership, and soldier's love for their country we were able to win!" He says proudly and laughs.

"Does it happen to mention anything pertaining to that elite killing squad?" She asks, flipping through the pages.

The bookseller blinks and chuckles a bit. "What? The Shadow Soldiers? Those people are a common myth." He looks around and leans over a bit, motioning her to do the same. "I hear those band of murderers were actually a mercenary group that took missions from both sides to fill their blood-lust and pockets. But you didn't hear that from me." He stands up straight and smiles. "Now...to answer your question, it doesn't. Sorry ma'am, but this is a historical book. All non-fiction." He nods and smiles.

"Good." She pays the man and takes the book before taking her leave and walking down the street. 'A thankless job. You are a shadow. Never to be seen. Never to be discovered. The Shadow Soldiers is an elite group no one must know the truth about. Words once spoken from the former king all those years ago. I suppose it's our motto as well.'

She glances behind herself, feeling an ominous presence behind her. She continues walking, going down the street, going down an alleyway. She stops at the end. "What do you want." She glances back at the hooded figure.

"I only want one thing." The voice was obviously male. Possibly in his mid 20's.

She turns to look at him and raises a brow. "Care to elaborate on that." She gets herself ready to defend herself, eyes watching his every move.

"Answers...I only want answers." He pulls his hood down. He reveals semi-long hair, stopping just above his shoulders, hazel eyes, and a scar going across his cheek. "You're a Shadow Soldier, aren't you?"

She sighs. "No. Of course not. They an urban legend. No one knows if they exist."

He shakes his head. "I knew you'd say that! This is why I got this!" He reaches into his cloak and pulls out her wanted poster. "This! I managed to get this off a Divine Guard! This is you...Wanted...The Black Death..."

She wasn't expecting this. What should she do? What exactly did he want? "What do you want?"

"You and your team are mercenaries, right? Willing to kill for the right price?" He falls on his knees and bows his head to the ground. "Please...you have to help me...my village is in serious trouble and...I don't have much, but I can pay you! Please!"

A mercenary group? Is that the popular belief now? Well, she will go along with it. "I can't accept. We aren't active and willing to take on jobs..."

He looks up, eyes wide and filling with tears. "B-but please! The Divine Guards they're are out of control! They're suppose to be protecting our village, but...they're running amuck..."

She raises a brow. Divine Guards...? What would they be doing there? "Why exactly are they there?"

"I don't know! They just showed up and said they had business there! Please please _please_! I need help I am willing to do anything if money isn't enough!"

She sighs heavily and rubs her temples. "I can't help you..."

"But..." He takes a deep breath. "Bristol Village...is in serious danger..."

Her eyes suddenly go wide. "Fine. Tomorrow morning, outside of the North gate. Meet me there."

He sits up and looks at her. "W-wait...really...? Y-you'll help? Thank you! Thank you so much!"

She walks past him. "Just make sure to be at the meeting area at 8am. Sharp. If you're not there then you can forget about helping."

He stands up and nods, making sure to write down where he needs to be and what time. "Yes ma'am! I promise to be there! You can count on that!"

Mara takes a shaky breath and sets her hand over her chest, clutching her book tightly. She continues to walk, her legs shaky. She feels as if she's about to fall over. She quickly weaves through the crowd and turns a corner. She quickly leans against the wall and takes a few, deep, shaky breathes.

"I-it's still...around...I didn't think..." She takes a few deep breathes to calm herself. She slides her back down on the wall. "It is just hard to believe...after all these years." She closes her eyes and lets out a slow, calm, breath. She opens her eyes and stands up straight. She starts to walk once more down the street. She finds a library and walks into it. She sits down and begins to read her book.

She can't concentrate on her book. She sighs heavily and rubs her temples. She can't concentrate on her reading. This annoys her greatly. She cant seem to get past the first line. Her mind is much to focused on what the boy told her about that village. She sets her book on her lap and intertwines her fingers together. She closes her eyes and thinks.

~o~o~o~o~o~

Francis grins big as he walks around, blowing kisses and winking at everyone female he passes. He is going to take advantage of this down time and enjoy himself!

"Aaahhhh~ I do love the fresh air and the beautiful sights~" He rubs his chin and grins and looks at the women passing by. He sighs happily and leans against a wall. "I don't think I can handle to much more of this! Oh I will need a drink." He chuckles lightly and looks around until he finds a bar. He claps his hands together and heads inside.

When he walks inside, he gets a few looks from the gruff looking customers. He smiles brightly and walks in. His heavy boots lightly hitting the ground. He waves and nods to anyone looking at him. He sits down at the bar and grins big.

"What'll you have?" Asks the bartender, cleaning a glass. The man is quite big, almost as tall as Daniel. The sleeves of his white shirt rolled up passed his elbows. Some arm hair is visible. He has muscle on his arms with a chubby belly. He has a very intense, blank, stare.

"A glass of red wine would be fantastique." He smiles softly and winks, tracing his finger over the counter top.

He raises a brow and stares at him. "You're not from around here are you? Not everyday I get a customer who orders that..." He reaches down and pulls out a wine glass. "About time." He grins big and laughs. He gets out a bottle of red wine. "Nice to know someone in here has some taste."

Francis chuckles and smiles. "Well, I wasn't sure what to expect, but it is always nice to meet a connoisseur of fine drinks."

"Here we have a red wine from the Isles of Iwalu. Aged to perfection for ten years." He pours the drink into his glass.

Francis smiles softly and stares down at the red liquid. "Ten years, hm?" He smiles softly and picks it up before taking a nice long sip. He rests his elbow on the counter top and sets his chin on the palm of his hand. "I suppose this is the perfect wine for me, oui?" He takes another small sip.

The bartender raises a brow. "What do you mean by that?"

He chuckles and looks down his reflection in the wine, staring at it with a bitter smile. "I've been...a bit lost for the past ten years...apart of a team that...broke up. I didn't know what to do...we were close friends...but to suddenly...break up...aaahhh, I tried living a normal life...it wasn't easy." He takes another sip of his drink.

"Wow...that sounds rough. Sorry to hear that." The bartender leans down, resting his arms on the counter. "What are you doing now? Did your team come back together?"

He smiles brightly at him and nods. "Oui. It's been a lot of fun. It reminds me of the old days, which make me happy."

The man chuckles and nods. "That's good to hear. I'm actually glad you're happy and with your friends. Nothing like traveling around with comrades, right?"

"Hey!" A hand slams down on the counter. A man riddled with scars and tattoos stares down at Francis. He is at least six feet tall and quite muscular.

Francis raises a brow and smiles at the man. "Oui? Something the matter?"

"Yeah. Something is the matter. You don't fit in here. What the hell are you dressed as?" The bigger man growls and glares down at him.

"Well. I am dressed as a doctor. I am a doctor after all." He chuckles. "Now can I go back to having my drink?"

The brute grips the glass and crushes it in his hand. "You don't belong here, so get out." The people inside the bar begin to laugh.

"Hey! What the hell are you doing?! This is MY bar. This isn't yours. You can't control who drinks here and who doesn't." The bartender slams his hands on the counter top.

Francis puts up his hand and chuckles, standing up. "Ah. It's quite alright." He chuckles lightly. He puts his hair in a ponytail then he puts on his surgeon mask. "The Doctor will see you now~" He winks.

~A few minutes later~

The bar goes silent. The big man that was bothering Francis is now lying down over a broken table, twitching and foaming at the mouth. His eyes rolled back to his head and face purple.

Francis smiles, holding a syringe in his hand. "Now he won't die. But I would watch him if I were you. He might start vomiting, so I'd roll him on his side." He sighs and puts away his syringe. "Now, I would like to enjoy the rest of my wine in peace, thank you." He sits back down in his seat.

The bartender takes out another wine glass and fills it up once more. He slides it across the counter to the grinning man. "Here you are. A new glass."

Francis picks it up. "Ah, thank you." He takes a sip from the glass and smiles softly, enjoying the taste. He didn't know why, but it brought back memories.

"I have to ask...just who are you? I mean, you can't be some regular guy." The bartender asks, leaning on the counter with his hands.

Francis chuckles. "My name is Francis Bonnefoy. I'm just a simple doctor in a team of other people like me." He smiles softly, taking a nice long sip of his wine. "But that's all you need to know, oui~?" He winks and grins.

The man chuckles lightly and nods. "If you say so Mr. Bonnefoy. You're welcome back in my bar whenever you're around. My door will always be open."

The doctor chuckles and grins. "I really appreciate that Monsieur. May I ask what your name is?"

"You can call me Buck. Everyone calls me that. Mind if I call you Francis?" He smiles a bit.

"Sure. I don't mind one little bit." He says with excitement in his voice. "It's always nice meeting someone new."

He chuckles lightly and nods. "So, are you really a doctor? Since you're dressed like one and all."

He grins and nods. "Oui! I am a licensed doctor. I can do surgeries, check ups, treat wounds, and diagnose. Not to mention I can prescribe medicine." He winks.

"Well, must come in handy having a friend like you in your group, right?" He chuckles lightly. "Your friends must be pretty lucky to have you around."

He smiles softly and shakes his head. "Non...it's the other way around. I'm lucky to have such amazing friends to be with." He smiles brightly.

~o~o~o~o~o~

"Alright guys! First time in a long time in a big city! So we gotta enjoy it while we can!" Alfred looks at Henry and Gilbert.

They both salute and nod.

"So! First things first! We gotta find some super awesome food." Alfred drools at the thought.

Henry raises his hand. "Do you have any money...?" Argon yawns and curls up on Henry's head.

"Well...no, but we have Gilbert! I'm sure he can help us out! Right?"

Gilbert blinks a few times and points to himself. 'Huh? What about me?"

"Can't you conjure up money or something? Didn't you do that a long time ago?" Alfred scratches his head.

Gilbert blinks and chuckles. "Oh yeah. I still have my money pouch."

Alfred laughs and grins big. "Alright my dudes! Time to live it up!"

"Yeah!" Henry throws his arms up. Argon squeaks and purrs softly.

"Follow me my dudes." Alfred says excitingly as he starts to walk with the other two following.

They arrive at a restaurant and Alfred drools smelling the food from outside. "Oooohhhh~ I smell wild berry pie, roasted boar, roasted potatoes, and..." He sniffs the air. "Grilled Marmor fish..."

Henry claps and nods. "That's really impressive Alfred. You haven't lost your touch."

Gilbert laughs. "You have a better sniffer than Daniel sometimes! Kesesese~!" He slaps his knee and shakes his head.

"Come on! I'm starving for real food! We've been eating berries and roasted random small animals Daniel catches." Alfred sticks out his tongue and shivers.

Henry points forward. "Onward!" He wraps his arms over his two friends shoulders and leads them inside.

Alfred and Henry order one of everything on the menu for their table. Much to the surprise of the waiter, they were serious. None the less, he takes their order and hurries off to the kitchen.

Argon squeaks and crawls down to the table and wags his tail. Henry smiles and rubs him under the chin. "You doing alright, buddy?"

"Hey Henry, I've been meaning to ask you this for awhile. Can you like...understand what he's saying? Like do you hear words? Or can you like read his thoughts?" Alfred stares down at Argon.

Henry chuckles lightly. "Well, I can't read his thoughts. It's sort of like I can understand him. It's more like he allows only me to understand what he's saying. I do hear a clear voice when he talks. But only I can hear it."

"Whoa. That's pretty cool." Alfred smiles. "You two have such a cool bond!"

Gilbert sets his chin on the table and groans. "When will the food get here."

"Try to remember we ordered a lot of stuff." Henry chuckles and ruffles him on the head. "Besides, it's not like you can feel hungry or anything. Well...at least not for human food."

Alfred shivers a bit. "Don't remind me dude. I try not to think about his need to eat souls."

Gilbert snorts and sits up. "It's not like I'm going to eat YOUR souls."

"Well, I know that NOW! But you always use to joke about eating our souls for the longest time." Alfred crosses his arms.

Gilbert cackles and grins. "That was always fun. You two are total scaredy cats."

"Hey! We are not scaredy cats! Any normal person would be scared of getting their soul taken by a devil." Henry crosses his arms. Argon nods as well.

Gilbert sticks his tongue out at them both.

Eventually their food arrives at the table after about an hour and a half. The three starts to chow down like no tomorrow. They begin to gather a small crowd of people to stare at them but they didn't care.

"It feels so good to eat actual food." Henry grins.

Alfred swallows and laughs. "I know right?!"

A hand slams down on the table, making the three stop mid-chew. The man is big. About Daniel's height. He has a muscular physique, but his belly is rather round and an eye patch over his right eye. His wide grin reveals missing teeth.

"You all ordered quite the lot of food ya did." He chuckles deeply.

Henry blinks a few times. "Well yeah. It's been awhile after all." He smiles.

"What of it?" Gilbert raises a brow.

"Must mean you got a lot of money." He drums his fingers on the table and glances between the three.

"Well." Alfred starts. "Sort of?" He tilts his head a bit.

"Here's the deal. Why don't you all hand me the money and I promise I won't hurt you. Sound like a deal?" He chuckles deeply and glances at the three.

Henry scratches the top of his head. "I don't think we can do that."

Alfred nods. "Right. Our leader would be like super pissed at us for giving away the money she didn't know about."

Gilbert waves his hand. "So why don't you go ahead and scamper along. We're trying to enjoy our meal."

The man chuckles lightly and nods. "I see. You three must be a bunch of clowns. You don't know who you're messing with here." He cracks his knuckles and smirks. "I happen to have some powerful friends."

Gilbert snorts a bit. "Really? Just how powerful are we talking?" He raises a brow, possibly interested. He could go for a fight after his meal.

"I happen to know one of the scariest assassin group out there. Said to be a myth, but I know they're real. I just so happen to be friends with the Shadow Soldiers."

Henry begins to choke on his drink and hits his chest. "W-what?!"

 **Heeellllooooo everyone! Now...I am sad to say that this is the last chapter I have pre-written! Sooo, I'll still be trying to post every 2 weeks, but just know that I'm writing these chapters so I can't promise they'll be up in time...but I will try my best!**


	27. Chapter 27: City Adventures 2

"I happen to be friends with the Shadow Soldiers."

Henry coughs and hits his chest a few times. "W-what?!"

The man sneers and laughs. "I bet you don't believe me, right? I get that a lot. But don't worry. I have ways of proving the truth." He reaches into his pocket and takes out a folded up sheet of paper and tosses it on the table. "Here. Take a look yourself."

The three look at each other with skeptical looks. Henry picks up the paper and unfolds it and begins to read. "Attention all Divine Guards. The Shadow Soldiers are still on the loose and all six members are together once again. If you happen to see them, make sure attack upon sight. We will not let these villains destroy our way of life. Bring them to the king's castle. Dead...or alive." He looks at his two friends. "Whoa. This is an official order from the king too. It has the official King's signature and stamp."

Gilbert snatches it from his hand. "Let me see that!" He reads over it to himself. He glances over at the smirking man. "How exactly did you get this?" He raises a brow.

"I have a friend who's close friends with a Divine Guard and he managed to snag it from him when he wasn't looking. So, the Shadow Soldiers are real. Like I said, I'm friends with them. So how about you fork over that money of yours and you won't meet an untimely death." He takes back his stolen king's order and folds it back up, setting it into his pocket.

The three look at each other. Alfred snickers and starts to laugh. The other two quickly join in. Gilbert hits the table with his hand. Henry holds his stomach and wipes the tears coming from his eyes. Alfred tries to breathe, getting red in the face.

The man growls and clenches his fists tightly. "Hey! Stop laughing already! What the hell is so funny?" He glances at them all, his brow twitching. "Are you still doubting their existence?!" He asks angrily.

Alfred puts up his hand and shakes his head, finally catching his breath and slowly begins to calm down. "N-no dude. We know they exist, b-but...you? How exactly are you friends with them? Like, do you know a member? Or?"

"W-well! I met them years ago! I helped them in the past! Said I could call them for a favor whenever I want!" He nods and crosses his arms.

Alfred chuckles lightly. "Right right. Okay, you can leave now. You have obviously never met them before. Now stop using their name to trick people into giving you stuff." He takes a sip of his drink.

He grabs Alfred by the shirt of his collar and brings him up to his face. "You're starting to piss me off." He says through grit teeth, his eyed livid with anger.

Alfred ends up spilling his drink on the floor when he jerks him up to his face. He sighs and rubs his head. "Come on man. You don't wanna do this."

Gilbert's brow twitches. He's starting to get annoy him. "Listen. How about you leave us alone and no one gets hurt."

"How about you shut your damn face!" He spits on the table. "You're all starting to piss me off!" He growls.

Henry sighs and rubs his head. "This isn't going to end well."

Alfred groans. "But you're the one who came to us. It's not our fault we know you're lying."

The man rears back his fist. "You punks are going to learn a hard lesson."

Gilbert grins from ear to ear, his tail swishing back and forth. He taps the table with one of his sharp nails. Hr let his devil features become visible to the rude and annoying man.

His eyes go wide and he drops Alfred. He stares at Gilbert and his jaw drops. "Y-you're..." He can't get the words out of his mouth.

"A devil? Demon? Monster? All are correct." He stands up and everything around them begins to melt away. "Now. I'm trying to enjoy a nice meal with my friends and here you come demanding our money and lying about being friends with the Shadow Soldiers." He walks closer to him, everything black.

The man falls down on his butt and tries to back away from him. "P-please! I-I...didn't mean t-to!" He begins to shake a little bit. "D-don't take my soul! I'll do anything!"

Gilbert stops in front of him and shakes his head. "It's much to late for that~ I am starving after all." He rubs his stomach. He slowly reaches down towards him and grins. "Human food just doesn't seem to cut it."

"No. Please no!" He trembles and stares at him with wide eyes. "Stop!" He yells and grasps his hair.

He's on the floor of the restaurant. He looks around. People stare at him and he looks back at a smirking Gilbert. He slowly gets up and runs off. "Damn it! Leave me alone you freaks!"

Henry blinks a few times. He looks over at Gilbert and raises a brow. "Gilbert? What did you do?"

He smiles innocently and tilts his head. "What ever are you talking about dear friend?"

Alfred grins. "Whatever. He left us alone and that's all I care about!" Alfred chomps down on a burger and laughs.

After their meal, they pay and leave the place full and happy.

Henry groans, rubbing his bulging belly. "I think I ate one plate to much." He holds his gut. Argon yawns, lying on his back on Henry's head, his belly bulging a bit as well.

Alfred burps and sighs happily. "That was amazing. I don't think I can eat another bite."

Gilbert stretches and sighs happily. "Alright. What's next on our party train." He cackles and grins.

"I'm to full to do anything. Maybe we are to old to go partying?" Henry scratches his cheek.

"What?! I think you're to old! We are still young and vibrant! I say we go and do whatever we can that's fun!" Alfred runs off and laughs.

"Kesesesese~! He's right you know! So let's go." Gilbert chases after him. "Wait up.,"

Henry sighs a bit. "Wait for me!" He runs after the two.

~o~o~o~o~o~

Daniel finds himself a nice comfy alley and stretches. He sits down on the ground and sighs. A nice comfy spot to fall asleep in. He closes his eyes.

"A nice quite, none crowded spot to sleep." He mutters and closes his eyes. He drifts to sleep pretty quickly. He manages a few minutes of rest.

Something flat and wet begins to rub against his face. He groans and moves his head around. He curses and opens his eyes. "Wha-huh?" He blinks a few times.

Staring at him and panting happily is a big, fluffy, dog. The canine's fur is mostly white with brown patches on his back, head, and its ears are black and floppy. It barks at him and licks his face again.

Daniel rubs his head. "I uh. Dog? Well, Saint Bernard to be exact. I don't have any food. Sorry." He closes his eyes once again.

The dog begins to whimper and rubs its head against him. It climbs into his lap and its tail begins to wag.

Daniel opens his eyes and stares down at the dog and sighs. "Do you not have an owner or something? Come on." he sets his hand on the dog's head. "You're a guy I take it?"

The dog looks at him and barks. He wags his tail and licks his face a few more times.

Daniel grunts softly and chuckles. "Alright, alright. Come on. I guess you can stick with me until I gotta leave." He pets the dog on the head. "Can I at least nap a little bit?"

The dog nods and lies down over his lap. He sets his head down on his paws and closes his eyes, ready to take a nap.

Daniel smiles lightly and closes his eyes. He soon starts to drift off to sleep, snoring lightly.

A few hours later, Daniel is walking around town with the big fluffy dog following next to him. Daniel looks rather intimidating, with his size, uncaring face, and glaring eyes. on the other hand, the dog looks the complete opposite. His tail wagging, tongue hanging out of his mouth as he looks around at everything.

People stare and aren't sure how to react to the two opposites.

Two kids run up to the man and his dog, much to their parent's concern.

"Mister, can we pet your dog!?" The little girl asks.

Daniel stops and blinks. "Sure, go ahead." He scratches the top of his head. "He's not really my dog though."

Both young children didn't seem to care as they begin to pet and scratch the dog, cooing at him. The dog wags his tail, enjoying all the attention. He licks them both on the face and whimpers happily.

"Hey mister, what's his name?" One of the little kids smiles up at him.

Daniel blinks and scratches his cheek. "His name?" He looks down at the dog. "Well. His name is uh..." He rubs his beard in thought and snaps his fingers. "I got it! Benny. His name is Benny."

The newly named Benny wags his tail and barks happily, panting.

The children's mother walks over and smiles at the large man. "Come on kids, let's leave the nice man alone. We have to head home."

"Awwwww." They both whine.

"Bye Benny!" One waves and smiles.

"See you mister!" The other smiles and waves.

Daniel waves as he watches them go. He looks down at Benny and smiles lightly. "You know, with you around I look less intimidating. I guess that's okay for now."

Benny licks his hand a few times and rubs his head into his hand. He wags his tail fast and whimpers happily.

Daniel picks up the dog, cradling him in his arms and he kisses his nose. "You're a cute big guy, you know that? I use to have a dog a long time ago. He was just a pup when my mom got him for me. Cute and fluffy..." He sighs and looks off to the side. He starts to walk. "But...he died trying to save me..." He grits his teeth. "I told him to stay...guess I didn't train him well enough, huh?" Tears prick the corner of his eyes and threaten to fall.

Benny whimpers and looks up at him and whimpers softly. He leans close and begins to lick his face a few times.

Daniel chuckles lightly and tries to move his head away. "Alright, alright. Come on now. No need to feel all sorry for me. It's okay. I'm okay." His stomach growls and he sighs heavily. "I'm starving. I'm sure you feel the same..." He sets down the dog and checks the insides of his pockets and groans. "Crap. I don't have any money." He sighs heavily.

Benny wags his tail and tilts his head a bit. He barks and rubs his head against him.

Daniel rubs his beard in thought. Then he gets an idea. "Alright, I think I have an idea on how to make some quick cash. Though, I doubt I'm going to enjoy it..." He pets the dog on the head. "I can at least get you something good to eat."

Benny barks and wags his tail. He leans his head back to lick at his hand and whimper softly.

~o~o~o~o~o~

"Come one come all! Watch as I juggle these sharp knives!" Daniel says as he juggles three large knives. "Feel free to leave money in the hat!" He gestures to Benny who pants and wags his tail as he sits behind a hat they found on the street.

People begin to gather around and watch him. A few people put some coins in the hat.

Daniel grins a bit and decides to make things more interesting. He stops juggling and puts on a blindfold. He starts juggling once more, this time juggling them faster and without the use of his sight.

People cheer and whistle. More people start to put money in the hat. Benny barks and sits up, waving his paws around. People awe and put more money in the hat.

Daniel throws the knives high in the air and takes a bow. Then he catches all three by the handle with ease. He takes off his blindfold and takes another bow, earning a round of applause from the crowd.

Some more people throw some money into the hat. Benny whimpers happily and barks a few times and waves his paws in the air once more.

Daniel and picks up the hat and checks inside then smiles. "I think this is just enough to get you something to eat." He rubs him on the head. He smiles at the happy canine and guides him to the nearest eating establishment.

He walks inside a tavern with Benny following close next to him. "This place looks nice." he nods.

"Er." A waiter stands in front of Daniel. "S-sir. I um. You..." She gulps a bit, feeling intimidated by the large man. "No dogs allowed inside."

Daniel blinks and stares down at her. "Oh. Right...sorry. Benny, please wait outside, okay?" He crouches down in front of him and rubs his head.

Benny whimpers slightly and licks his face a few times. He wags his tail and walks outside. He lies down and sets his head on his paws.

Daniel stands up straight. "I'd like this to go please."

She nods and smiles a bit. "Yes sir. Let me guide you to a table so you can order." She walks to an empty table and has him sit down.

Daniel rubs his beard as he looks over the menu and looks down at his hat of money. He picks what he wants and leans back in his chair as he waits.

After some time the waiter comes back with hi food in a container. "Thank you sir and come again." She smiles.

Daniel takes the container and gives her the hat. "Feel free to keep the hat and change, alright? Thanks." He walks back outside and sees Benny lying down. "Heeey Benny."

The dog perks up and wags his tail. He sits up and pants happily. He barks a few times and whimpers happily.

"I got you something to eat. A nice juicy burger. It comes with fries if you want those too." He picks up the burger and hods it out to Benny.

The dog wags his tail faster and takes a nice big bite out of it and whimpers happily as he chows down on the burger. When he's done, he starts to eat the fries.

Daniel chuckles and pets his head as he watches him eat. He smiles and pets his head. "You're a good boy, aren't you? How could you not have an owner." He chuckles lightly. "Don't worry, I'll make sure to take extra good care of you, alright?" He grins.

Benny whimpers happily and rubs his head under his chin and wags his tail fast.

~o~o~o~o~o~

Ludwig walks around the large city, looking at the various stands and shops around. He sighs a bit. He then feels the mirror begin to vibrate in his pocet. He takes it out and looks at his reflection. "Er...hallo?"

His reflection is soon replaced with a misty background and Drac appears in the mirror. "Something the matter Ludwig? You seem a bit down."

"Well." He shakes his head. "It's nothing. I'm just thinking is all."

"Hm. You are worried you are dead weight to the team it seems."

"What? How did you-"

"I have many abilities Ludwig. I can help you if you wish.'

Ludwig perks up a bit. "Really? How?"

"I can train you. I've trained and studied with many excellent fighters. I think I can help you find a style and weapon type that fits you perfectly."

Ludwig feels his heart hit his chest and he nods. "Please! That sounds perfect! What must I do?"

"First, we must go somewhere more secluded. Their is a park not to far from here. It is a nice size so I'm sure we can find a secluded area to practice."

Ludwig nods and starts to run. "Just tell me where to go!" He smiles. He is happy he can finally be of some use to the team.

When he finds the park, he finds a small clearing behind some tall bushes. He is sure no one is going to bother them there.

"Now." Drac begins. "I think I have an idea on what your fighting style is. You fit the role of a knight. Protecting those you hold close, a strong sense of justice, and the willingness to put your life on the line when the stakes are high. The sword and shied shall be your weapons."

"The sword and shield?" Ludwig looks down at his hands and nods. "Right."

"Now, I happen to have both a sword and shield you may wield. They're not that heavy so it shouldn't be to hard to wield them. As you progress you may wish to upgrade your weapons, which I advise. But these should last you awhile."

Ludwig nods. "Thank you. I appreciate this very much. I shall so everything I can to become stronger. I promise."

"Now. Set me down a few feet away, alright?"

Ludwig nods and sets the mirror on the ground a few feet away. "Right. I'm ready!"

"I truly look forward to training you Ludwig. I shall help train you into a fine warrior! Prepare yourself. This won't be easy, but I have faith in you. Now. It's time you take your first step!" The mirror glows a blinding green color, making Ludwig shield his eyes.

Ludwig removes his eyes to see a round, bronze shield at least four feet wide with two leather straps on the inside and a sword nearly three feet long. The handle wrapped in leather and the hilt made of silver, along with the blade. They both float in the air.

"Take them. For they are yours."

Ludwig slowly walks over, his eyes wide. He grips the handle of the sword and holds it. It's a bit heavy, but nothing he can't handle. He then slips his arm into the leather straps on the inside. He grunts softly as his arm drops a bit, not expecting the shield to be that heavy. It was heavier than the sword, but still nothing he can't handle.

"I see. They are a bit heavy, but I hope with some training they won't be so heavy to me anymore." Ludwig examines the shield and sword. "Now. What's the first exercise?"

 **Hello! I managed to finish this one time much to my own surprise! Yeah Ludwig is gonna be learning how to fight! Sweet, right? I hope you all are enjoying this! Make sure to review and such.**


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